Simple Broadband

[Steve]

Choices Choices?????

My mother-in-law wants to get online for the first time! :ack2:

They pay for their telephone through BT and have a simple Sky Plus TV package for £20 a month which they're happy with.

It seems the options are endless...... but they don't need unlimited t'internet access (no point for them) or massive download speeds, so 10GB per month and up to 8mb (or similar) speed would be just fine for their needs.

Been looking at a few packages and many seem to be tied into a broadband and phone deal with free weekend/evening calls. It's hard to pick one out as the best and cheapest overall. A few have a one-off setup charge, some charge a nominal fee for the router, and of course the monthly charges vary etc etc. I tend to look straight past the entry offer (such as free for 3 months, or half price for 3 months or whatever) and go straight to the final monthly figure, then look at line rental costs on top, then router and setup charges.

Any suggestions on a decent service provider that would meet these needs for a good price? :)

[Craig33]

I recently had to set up bb after moving. Ended up goin with Zen Internet after thinking about ADSL24. I wanted reliability over most things and knew they have a good rep. Both companies are built arond no frills service. Just pay your money and get Internet. So far so good for Zen. I like the fact my service is now the same speed during peak hours but obviously that might differ depending on location.

[MartinH]

Shot in the dark but I was very happy with Virgin when I had cable coverage, they do broadband aswell.

[url=http://allyours.virginmedia.com/websales/product.do?id=3264]Up to 10Mb - Broadband - Virgin Media[/url]

[waveydavey]

Steve have you tried the [URL="http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/utilities/"]Money Saving Expert[/URL] website. I find it the best for deals and good at comparing

[derrick]

Sky works ok i think if you swap your phone to sky you get bb free

[easypickingsere]

Dont know if this will help [url=http://www.dslzoneuk.net/]DSL ZoneUK - broadband for everyone[/url]

Cant comment on Virgin cable tho I do know the Virgin service over phone lines is appauling (in my experience). Had BT BB years ago and did seem pretty reliable at the time, may well of changed by now tho. Closer you are to the exchange the better your broadband will be tho, DSLZone gives alot of comparrisons which I found usefull in the past

[machasm]

If they have sky already then its a no brainer really. Sky's BB is very good value for money. The support is rubbish but as long as you don't have to contact tech support then for a fiver a month you will be on their mid package. They don't throttle their lines so speed is very consistent.
If you want good support then Zen are one of the best BUT you do pay a premium for that service.
I have had a few providers in my time including Zen and have to say that value for money you can't beat sky. Only caveat is make sure that your exchange has been unbundled otherwise you will get a rebranded BT service (Called Sky connect).
[URL="http://www.samknows.com/broadband/"]This[/URL] site is great for finding more info on your local exchange
Adrian.

[Smoothound]

If you can get Virgin on a cable it is miles better than 99% of the rest. Think they are doing fairly good deals currently.

If you are trying to do it on the cheap over a phone line don't expect a lot if you want something really cheap. might be ok for just light browsing and email but my Mum has a Talk Talk setup and it's pretty grim even if it is cheap ;)

[Steve]

Thanks.

BT do Option 1 Broadband only for £16 a month or a bundled internet and evening/weekend call package for £20 a month.
Sky do Broadband with free weekend/evening phone calls and line rental for £21 a month.
Virgin do Broadband only for £20 a month.
Talk Talk do Broadband with free evening/weekend phone calls and line rental for £18.50 a month but also have a one-off £30 setup charge.

All are more than adequate speed and download wise. The head line figures advertised are seldom the actual amount you pay, so hoepfully I've tried to find the 'actual' figures.

Never heard of Zen, might give them a look too.

But as has been said, they've already got a deal with Sky for TV, so it's probably the easiest option, and they'll get a new HD TV box as well........... bit pointless as they don't have an HD ready TV, but hey, it's all a bonus! :)

:cheers2:

[Steve]

Right next question..............





Now I've got to get them a computer - laptop would be best, £500 budget.

I would love to get them a Macbook, but they are out of budget unfortunately, so we'll have to stick with Windoze.

??????????

Talk about choices...... :svengo:

[serpent887]

[quote=Smoothound;471819] my Mum has a Talk Talk setup and it's pretty grim even if it is cheap ;)[/quote]


One of my installations chose to transfer to Talk Talk which led directly to a series of problems, eventually solved by reverting back to BT Broadband.

The basic package is not too expensive and is very reliable :)

[Mark_T]

[quote=Steve;471835]Never heard of Zen, might give them a look too.[/quote]

Zen are one of the best of the 'original' ISPs, those who were providing broadband before everyone else started bundling it with phone/TV etc.

Rarely if ever have Zen been accused of being 'cheap', but if I had to put non-computer oriented relatives online they would be top of my list as I would trust their tech support guys to help out when problems inevitably occur.

[Tim Procter]

I have been with Zen for the last 6 years and never had any downtime or problems.;)

They are not the cheapest but they certainly answer the phones (yes english too) within seconds which is worth a lot to me.:cheers2:

I hate sitting in queue's listening to music.:ack2:

[Kwickkwack]

Steve
Might be worth investigating mobile broadband, there are some deals with various companies that will give you a free laptop with a mobile dongle. I know its probably an 18-24month contract, but might be worth costing that against a new PC and the broadband you will have to pay as well. Best check the area for 3G signal though.

[Tim Procter]

[quote=Kwickkwack;471938]Steve
Might be worth investigating mobile broadband, there are some deals with various companies that will give you a free laptop with a mobile dongle. I know its probably an 18-24month contract, but might be worth costing that against a new PC and the broadband you will have to pay as well. Best check the area for 3G signal though.[/quote]

Now there's a thought, Mobile BB is fast too, I have a T-Mobile dongle for the laptop and its fine.:cheers2: