Upgrading to broadband

I`m thinking of upgrading to broadband but just wanted to know before hand what is involved. I currently have a 56K connection so do most broadband deals offer a free broadband modem? I live in the UK if this makes any difference. And does getting broadband involve having my front garden dug up to lay the cables etc... And lastly the deal I am looking at offers 2GB per month, is this enough for an average user?

Jason.

lol. No! :)

From your email address I guess you're considering the 2GB Wanadoo deal? I'm with wanadoo's wireless & talk which I've found to be excellent. They provide the router/modem so there's no extra cost involved.

Whether 2GB a month is enough depends on what you do online. I don't play online game or download music or watch many videos so it plenty for me. I worked it out to be ~65MB a day which I haven't reached once, yet.

Before signing up, check what bandwidth you can actually get on your phone line. Theres a test thing on the wanadoo site, somewhere. Wanadoo is a 2Mbit service but my line can only handle 1Mbit. Still a DAMN site faster that dialup, though, Get it!!! :)

For most it involves abuse of P2P software...


God bless Maggie Thatcher, because of her you'll be paying through the teeth for something that would have been standard in every household 20 years ago (well ok they where talking about ISDN then not BB but that was then). Mind you, local call rates arn't 10p a minute anymore...


No. When cable first came around they would go to those lengths for a new customer just to get them onboard, but these days if there's no existing cable they dont care enough to get your business as it is not economically viable (customer loyalty is lower now that we have more phone providers - again, Maggie Thatcher).


There is no such thing as an average user. You only have to have a particular enjoyment of one inane pasttime to send your bandwidth through the roof: Whether it be downloading films; Looking at naked pictures of goats; or browsing a forum relentlessly and hitting refresh every 22 seconds. For most people 2gb is enough, I have no idea what I use but i'm on unlimited bandwidth (NTL - I dont recommend them). From what I understand most UK providers are not actively enforcing their bandwidth limits - it's simply a matter of cost on their leased lines, they are usually leased on a banded scale and it's only a problem if the next charging band is looming for them.

hey QuickSil... it's a different world... give up dat garden if you have to...

... imagine being able to view videos on line, download real game demos hundreds of megabytes in size...

... imagine being able to talk on the phone while you are online!!! i'm still getting used to that one... everytime the phone rings and i go to pick it up, i still subconciously stop and check to see if i'm online :)

imagine it always being htere for you... just click and the news, stock quotes, forums, online games, the whole virtual universe... at your fingertips....

:)

--Mike

Best service is Blueyonder www.telewest.co.uk -

Soon it will be divided into two tiers - 4mbps and 10mbps... and you're likely to get those speeds too with their track record.

There are zero limits on how much you can download. It is unmetered and uncapped.

They will lay cabling down and install it, but I have been with them for what, 5 years? great people.

NTL are also good. They are merging with telewest though.

ADSL is a good second. Always look for unmetered and uncapped and expect to pay between £25 to £35 for a minimum of 4mbps for that price.

You'll get a great deal of porn in a very small amount of time.



Mine is unlimited, so I wouldn't know. I can safely say I've downloaded about 10gb already this month.

What is the purpose of having broadband if you do not have unlimited use? This isn't the mid 90's. Unlimited use is an industry standard for dialup or broadband.

Yep, do not get "deals" like that. Go for uncapped.

Gawd, if I had a 2GB cap, I'd have to d/l linux over a period of a few months... eep!

I get through 3 or 4 GB a day sometimes (I'm with Zen Internet, they are excellent).

Try to avoid signing up to anyone that:

A) Binds you into a 12 month contract.
B) Offers a 'free' modem or 'free' connection that you actually have to pay £60 for if you leave their service within *6* years!

Look for a provider that makes it very clear that you have only a 1 month contract and that also offers inbound and outbound migration (i.e. they do not make it difficult for you to leave).

Visit www.adslguide.org.uk and compare some ISP's. Be sure to check out Zen and freedom2surf (f2s).

2GB a month will see you through fine if you do online gaming, email and a bit of web browsing. Online gaming does not use up a lot of bandwidth.