DNA company recommendations - any good experiences?

[hsfam]

 I don't know if there are any rules on this, but I'm trying to get an idea of what experiences people have had with various DNA testing companies.

I would like to get a number of my family members tested but am confused over who to go with. Initially, I wish to do all three tests for my father and the autosomal and mtDNA for my mother though I suppose I could just get one test each and then pay for upgrades later.

I am in Australia and I believe that this may mean limited options regarding companies.

My first option was FTDNA but looking over the posts on their Facebook page, it seems that some people have lately been having some pretty bad customer experiences. This is rather worrying considering the amount of money I would be spending.

With that in mind, which companies have people had good (recent) experiences with and would recommend, considering my location and the tests I would like to get done?

Any advice would be welcome.

TIA

[SeminoleZephyr]

Tia,
For Y and mtDNA testing FTDNA is the ONLY company to use!  They have the world's largest databases and that means a better potential for matches for you.  As the company has grown larger the test times have slowed some due in part to increased orders.  They have made some recent improvements in the notifications system for testing which looks to be helpful at keeping customers notified as to when to expect results.  Y testing seems to be taking the longest of late, but in this case you should know it will be worth the wait.  I used FTDNA in 2007 and  it helped us over a 20 year brick wall on my family and now I am using it again in an attempt to make connections in England where we now know our family originated prior to the US. 
They do sale package deals and you can add autosomal testing (Family Finder is their name for it) as an upgrade later during a sale.  They do have sales regularly and indeed if you join a project you may find coupons available for upgrades as well.
Hope this helps!
Sincerely,
Zephyr

[hsfam]

 Thank you, Zephyr.

That was very helpful. 

I was only worried as I've seen some comments even on FTDNA's own forum, where there has been speculation that customer service, testing times etc have become so bad that the company was going bust. I didn't want to pay out a lot of money and then have the company fall over!    

[hsfam]

I did have another idea...the National Geographic Geno 2.0 test?

From the FAQ, it appears they do more in-depth testing and will give you the results and they do all of the tests (mtDNA, autosomal and YDNA in the case of men). And as an extra benefit, they check out whether you have Neanderthal or Denisovan ancestry which, for me, would be more for its novelty value than anything actually useful. As the testing company used is FTDNA anyway, FTDNA will transfer the results across to their database for free.

I'm a bit confused by the pricing but assume it is US dollars so about $200 plus P&H etc.

However, if you participate,  you are basically making your genome results available for scientific research.

Has anyone gone that route? Were the results worth it? Any concerns?

[DevonCruwys]

There's no chance of FTDNA going bust. They did have a few problems with the Y-DNA tests in particular when they had to come up with a new methodology for the Y-STR tests after they were let down by a supplier but I think everything is starting to get back to normal.

As has already been said, FTDNA is the only choice for Y-DNA and mtDNA testing if you want to use the tests for genealogical purposes. They're now the only company that have a matching database which is what you need to get the most out of the tests. There are now three companies that offer autosomal DNA testing in the UK (FTDNA, 23andMe and AncestryDNA). The choice will depend to a certain extent on your budget and your reasons for testing. You might like to have a look at the comparison charts linked from this page in the ISOGG Wiki:

http://www.isogg.org/wiki/List_of_DNA_testing_companies

If you want to find out more about DNA testing you might like to come along to Who Do You Think You Are? Live and come to some of the DNA lectures:

http://www.whodoyouthinkyouarelive.com/workshop-timetable-dna

ISOGG will have a stand at the show (stand number 104) with volunteer helpers who can provide advice on DNA testing.

[SeminoleZephyr]

I agree with Devon no chance of FTDNA going bust.  If you are doing the testing for genealogy you don't want the Nat Geno test--I have done it on Dad and while it's true they give you some of all of it, they don't test as many markers for any of it as FTDNA does individually and the more markers the better for all test types.    Also Nat Geno  has no one to compare to, meaning they don't do comparisons so you lose the part at FTDNA that will help you most making Nat Geno of no help to you genealogically.  Also the raw data can't be used at gedmatch which is where you will want to upload after you get results in order to compare to folks who have tested at ancestry and 23andme..gedmatch.com is a free site that allows you to compare to others from other companies thereby widening your net of potential matches so to speak.

FTDNA will also have a booth at WDYTYA (see exhibitors link)
http://www.whodoyouthinkyouarelive.com/
 The event is April 16-18, at the NEC in Birmingham, UK and I will be attending myself.  Hope to see you there!

[hsfam]

Thank you, Zephyr and Devon!

You've definitely set my mind at rest. Devon - what you say makes sense and that's really great! 

I would love to come to WDYTYA. Unfortunately, I can't afford the fare from Australia at the moment. 

Anyway, that's now helped to make my decision and I feel much better about it now. 

[BumbleB]

My apologies in advance for this - but I have to ask why there is this great interest in DNA sampling?  If you're doing your family history then you know where you come from - or have I got the wrong impression altogether?  What do you hope to gain by participating?  I know that if I was investing such a sum of money (showing my Yorkshire roots now  ) I'd want to receive something more than an indication of where my genes came from.  As of this moment, I just don't see the point - sorry 

[DavidG02]

My apologies in advance for this - but I have to ask why there is this great interest in DNA sampling?  If you're doing your family history then you know where you come from - or have I got the wrong impression altogether?  What do you hope to gain by participating?  I know that if I was investing such a sum of money (showing my Yorkshire roots now  ) I'd want to receive something more than an indication of where my genes came from.  As of this moment, I just don't see the point - sorry 

For many it will be an adjunct to their own family tree searches. Either confirming , through matches, lineal descent, or highlighting a possible cuckoo in the nest or a name/letter substitution ie Looking for a Flower instead of a Fowler.

There are some companies who do take advantage of the ignorance of people by offering to ''confirm your viking ancestry!!'' or '' did your forebears walk with Jesus'' etc. because to my mind ultimately, if the historians are correct, our genes should follow in the footsteps out of Africa, along the Middle East coast and upwards or westwards of Europe.

For me , I will eventually fork out the $$$$ because I want to know a few things. Am I unique? I seem to recall Eddie Izzards father had a rare haplogroup. I want to be that person.

I want to know do I have Neanderthal or Denisovian(unlikely) or am I the new superbreed of human ready to take over the world ( hahaha evil laugh haha)

But mostly I want to know who do I share my genetic base with more strongly. Yes we will mostly show a kinship, based on numerical logicity, but we will have stronger ties to some clans than others.

So whats my clan is my search reason.