What Broadband should I get?

Largest of Gregs · 17th March 2005, 9:04pm

So your thinking of getting broadband huh? There are loads of different providers out there that offer different deals on broadband. The most popular providers currently are AOL, NTL, BT.

Here is a summary of what each provides in different price brackets...

Up to £20 per month

BT Broadband Basic - £17.99p/m Speed- 512K Monthly limit - 1GB

AOL Broadband Silver - £17.99p/m Speed- 512K Monthly limit - Unlimited downloads

NTL 1MB - £17.99p/m Speed- 1MB Monthly limit - 3GB

Up to £30 per month

BT Broadband £24.99p/m Speed - 2MB Monthly limit - 15GB

BT Yahoo Broadband £26.99p/m Speed - 2MB Monthly limit - 15GB

AOL Broadband Gold £24.99p/m Speed- 1MB Monthly limit - Unlimited downloads

NTL 2MB - £24.99p/m Speed- 2MB Monthly limit - 30GB

NTL 3MB - £37.99p/m Speed- 3MB Monthly limit - 30GB

AOL Broadband Platinum £29.99p/m Speed- 2MB Monthly limit - Unlimited downloads

Most of these will provide a free adsl modem fo you to connect up with, but check with them at the time. This is dependant on their current promotions

Tommy · 17th March 2005, 9:07pm

I've got AOL's 512k package and man its been great. No hassle at all. I've had their dial up many times and never a problem, unlike Tesco. Dont get Tesco. Their helpline is premium rate (unlike free AOL) and the guys will eventually blame your pc and not their network (even though you can connect via AOL).

I had NTL at my Ma's and never had any problem with them either.

Tommy · 17th March 2005, 9:08pm

I might also add I chose AOL for their no download limit

GoddamnElectric · 17th March 2005, 9:15pm

It's also worth mentioning for the total newbie that NTL is a cable-based service and requires cable in your area, while BT and AOL are DSL based services that only require that your local BT junction box is DSL-enabled (which is almost a certainty these days).

A good web resource to consult prior to signing up to a contact (yes, almost all broadband is a contract service that ties you in for normally 12 months at a time) is:
http://www.broadbandforscotland.co.uk/

punkin_drunk · 19th March 2005, 7:00pm

i work for ntl and the download limit doesnt actually come on most of the time which is a waste of having really.but still aye avoid ntl if you have any sense.

Zippy · 19th March 2005, 7:06pm

I'm with the BT 2MB connection and again I've never had any major issue with it, in fact when I had 1MB they sent me a letter to tell me they were upping it to 2MB and knocking £4 off the price.

Ideal.

Run_Lola_Run · 19th March 2005, 7:15pm

Aye I've always had NTL and no problem at all

Just a question I was wondering. Don't you need to have a telephone contract with BT when it comes to getting broadband? Or is it just the phone line box in the house?

PS Is there anyway I can check how much of my bandwidth I've used or am currently using?

Fenntastic · 19th March 2005, 7:47pm

i have telewest. 'sawright

GoddamnElectric · 20th March 2005, 12:13pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by Run_Lola_Run

Aye I've always had NTL and no problem at all

Just a question I was wondering. Don't you need to have a telephone contract with BT when it comes to getting broadband? Or is it just the phone line box in the house?

PS Is there anyway I can check how much of my bandwidth I've used or am currently using?

1) the BT contract issue depends on the company. If the company uses BT lines for their service, then yes probably. This is roughly about 90% of non-cable providers. However, some are less fussy about whether you're a BT customer or just have a BT line (through one of those companies you see on the TV). It's always best to ask the ISP in advance, but as a general rule most large companies will only provide you with service if you're a BT customer. Cable companies like NTL are different, since BT are not involved in the cable process.

2) checking you're own bandwidth can be done two ways. Either you get a small program like NetMeter (which can also count how much you download - useful if you have a limit), or you can google for a website that will check for you. I find the broadband tester at http://www.adslguide.org.uk/tools/speedtest.asp is decent, but thats only for DSL. I suspect the NTL homepage might have something similar for cable if thats what you need.

m0nkeymafia · 27th March 2005, 6:30pm

I've used pipex's 512K adsl for the last 2 years, £23.50/month and no limit on downloads. The service is being upgraded to 1MB shortly for the same price. No hassles what so ever.

Timmy · 27th March 2005, 6:39pm

aol is ok if u use aol dialer on it.. but then its pointless...

just get blueyonder.. never had a problem with it.

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