Broadband has really taken off in recent years, making dial-up internet connections virtually a thing of the past like manual typewriters and fountain pens.
Lots of things we take for granted now would be unthinkable without broadband, such as online gambling and gaming, quick download of software and photographs, online chat and social networking and much else besides. Broadband keeps you connected all day and night, and you’re not charged according to the length of time you’re online, as was the case with dial-up.
There are so many diverse companies offering different types of deals nowadays that it can be bewildering choosing broadband deals that are right for you. When you compare broadband providers you can use broadband comparison websites to narrow the wide choice down, and key in the information that will tailor the choice in line with your needs. Then ring up a few frontrunners and discuss the finer details.
Whether you want to compare mobile broadband, business broadband or domestic broadband options, getting onto a broadband comparison website is the best place to start.
With companies as diverse as Tesco Broadband, Orange Home Broadband, Tiscali Broadband, TalkTalk Broadband, Be Broadband, PlusNet Broadband and many more now baying for customers, it pays to shop around. Bear in mind such things as length of contract, download speeds, usage caps and freebies such as email accounts and free web space when deciding on broadband providers.
In an age of so much choice in every sphere, bear in mind what you want to use your broadband connection for above all else, to avoid paying too much for extras you don’t need or, at the other extreme, finding yourself without adequate connectivity.
Dial-up has become quite antiquated with the advent of broadband for internet connectivity, and it’s not difficult to see why. The connection speed of broadband can by anything up to 100 times as fast as that for dial-up, and where you’d have to have waited maybe hours to download photographs and software it now takes just a few minutes, and online gambling could never have happened without broadband. Watching movies on your PC also requires broadband.
Broadband providers such as Sky Broadband and Virgin Media Broadband have taken advantage of the fact that broadband does not require a telephone line to push their popular 3-in-1 bundle offers of satellite TV with broadband connectivity and free national telephone calls. This is often the simplest and most cost-effective way for the normal home user to get broadband, and carries the additional advantages of overall reduced costs, greater choice of TV channels and simplified billing arrangements.
The other big advantage of broadband for most users of O2 Broadband, Orange Home Broadband, Be Broadband, Tesco Broadband and all the other broadband providers in the market is that with broadband you have unlimited connectivity and are not charged on usage. A possible disadvantage here is that broadband providers often have a cap on usage, but just remember to ask about this before you take out a contract with them.
Use broadband comparison websites to compare the latest deals whether you’re taking out broadband for the home or want to compare mobile broadband offers.
Depending on your broadband provider, broadband UK speeds can vary greatly. However, there is a minimum and average speed that applies to almost every provider. To get the best speeds possible, you should understand what speeds are available and the absolute minimum you should settle for.
Minimum Broadband UK Speeds
The minimum broadband speed is 512 Kbps, which is approximately nine times faster than dial-up. This speed may be slightly slower during high usage periods when multiple users are sharing bandwidth. However, you should always look for speeds higher than this if possible, especially to achieve the best performance.
Average Broadband UK Speeds
On average, you can expect providers to offer speeds of around 20 to 30 Mbps, which makes the minimum speed seem like a slow dial-up connection. Once again, these speeds can vary greatly depending on the number of users trying to connect at once. The number of users at one time refers to the number of people using the service on the same telephone exchange, not the number of people in your home.
Maximum Broadband UK Speeds
If you are lucky, you may be able to find a broadband provider that offers speeds near the maximum broadband speed of approximately 50 Mbps, which is around 900 times faster than dial-up. This is rare to find; even when a provider offers it, speeds generally fall around the average speeds instead. However, upload and download speeds are faster the closer you get to the maximum speed.
Cost
Broadband providers charge a monthly subscription and usually set an upper limit that the user is allowed to download each month, in-line with the amount of the subscription. Usually, the higher the download limit is, the higher the subscription will be. Therefore, the lower the monthly subscription is, the lower the amount you will be allowed to download each month.
Unlimited Use
Some ISPs allow unlimited download usage which, in theory, allows you to download as much as you like: video files, sound files, and large images; whatever you want. However, the ISP will include a limit called the “fair usage policy”, which ensures that the service does not become clogged-up by heavier users. The amount of traffic can affect the performance of the cable connection, causing other users to receive poor quality connections. The ISP is likely to impose a temporary blockage on the connection of heavy users, hence slowing that user’s connection or even cutting it off for the remainder of that month. Some ISPs even have a policy of imposing an additional fee if usage becomes too heavy.
Set Your Limit
Sometimes our use of our internet connection may become heavier than normal, and it is worth anticipating this spike in usage and getting in touch with your ISP and arranging a temporary increase in your download limit, thus paying the additional cost. This way you will not exceed your download limit and incur penalties from your provider. Once the usage slips back to normal, do not forget to let your ISP know you want to reduce your limit.
To entice customers, broadband providers offer a variety of deals. Broadband deals can be temporary or permanent. Some providers offer deals to only new customers, while some offer deals to existing customers as well.
Bundling
The most common type of broadband deals is bundling. Bundling allows you to receive a discount on your service if your bundle is with another service, such as phone or television service. Your monthly bills are combined and the total charge is less.
Temporary Discount
Another common deal is the temporary discount. If you sign a one or two year contract, your monthly rate may be as much as half-off for three months to a year. This deal takes many users by surprise since they do not read all of the fine print when the offer ends.
Switch Providers
If you want to switch providers, many broadband providers offer to pay your early-termination fee, if applicable. If you are not under contract, a new provider may offer you free equipment or a temporary discount for switching. If you are unhappy with your current provider, this type of deal works great.
Free Equipment
When you sign up for new service, many broadband providers offer free equipment when you sign a contract. In some cases, free installation is offered in addition to the equipment. Some providers ask you to choose between free equipment and installation. If you want a shorter term contract, you can often receive a discount on the equipment instead of getting it for free.
If you have the option of choosing between broadband and mobile broadband, you must weigh the pros and cons of each before purchasing. A broadband to mobile broadband comparison will help you see exactly what you get from both types of service.
Speed
The biggest difference between the two is speed. A broadband connection can range in speed from 8 Mbps to around 30 Mbps, depending on the broadband provider. A mobile broadband connection typically only reaches speeds of up to 7.2 Mbps. For streaming media regularly, a broadband connection works best.
Price
Broadband is normally cheaper than mobile broadband; the main reason is mobility. You pay extra money for the ability to take the service with you where ever you go. Mobile broadband packages cost on average of 1.5 to 2 times more than normal broadband.
Downloads
In this department, the comparison mainly depends on the provider. Mobile broadband is typically restricted to 15 GB or less. Many regular broadband providers also restrict downloads to 10 GB to 40 GB, although many offer unlimited downloads.
Contracts
Regardless of which type of broadband you choose, you will more than likely be required to sign up under a contract of at least one year. Most contracts last one to two years. A contract means you are required to pay the monthly fee for the service for the duration of the contract. You cannot cancel the service unless the provider breaches the agreement without paying an early-termination fee. Noting the pros and cons of a provider’s terms and conditions is an important aspect of mobile broadband comparison.
There are a huge number of broadband providers in the market now, from Orange Home Broadband and Tiscali Broadband to BT Total Broadband and various business broadband and mobile broadband providers. They all offer different packages depending on the requirements of the customer and it’s important to decide what level of service suits your specific requirements before signing up. Broadband comparison websites can greatly help here, sifting the deals of the day in line with your requirements.
Broadband providers will provide all the hardware you need to connect through them, such as the modem and software, which will usually come free of charge.
Bear a few things in mind when choosing between the broadband providers. Business broadband, for example, comes with a much higher level of support than home broadband, and in any case there is no point in opting for the fastest download speeds and technical support if you’re just checking emails and doing a bit of surfing. Equally, a corporate user will place much more emphasis on the support as if the connection fails for some reason they’ll usually be losing money hand over fist until it’s corrected.
The domestic user can consider things like term of the contract, whether they’re tied in for 12 or 18 months for example, or prefer to have a rolling monthly contract. Often it’s best to go for a 3-in-1 package such as those provided by Virgin Media, which covers TV and telephone as well as the basic broadband connection.
Virgin Media offer four broadband deals. The first gives you broadband, TV and calls for just £9.50 for the first six months; then £19.25 per month for the balance of the contract. In this bundle, up to 10Mbps broadband is available and 65 digital TV channels. Additionally, there are unlimited weekend calls to UK landlines and Virgin mobiles. The second bundle costs £11.75 for the first six months and then £24 per month for the rest of the contract. 100 digital channels can be watched with this package and up to 10Mbps broadband. The second option has the same call allowance as the first one. Purchasing a Virgin Media phone line for this package is recommended in order to save more money on calls; line rental costs £12.24 per month.
The third package is £15.75 for the first six months, increasing to £31.50 per month for the remainder of the contract. This package is perfect for serious broadband fans as it provides up to 50Mbps super-fast broadband, 65 digital TV channels and unlimited weekend calls to UK landlines and Virgin mobiles. The final package, priced at £24.56 per month for the first six months and then £46.56 for the remainder of the contract, gives you over 160 digital channels. The calls are the same as the other packages and you can get up to 20Mbps of broadband. All the deals offer a £50 credit on your first bill and free installation, worth £40, if you order online.
Analyst Point Topic released a report earlier this year revealing that almost four million children are being put at an educational and financial disadvantage because they do not have access to broadband internet at home.
Point Topic says that one of the main reasons for families lacking broadband is that these families can’t afford it. However it is worth remembering that some areas in the UK do not have access to the internet at all.
The report says that the areas where there are families who do not have access to broadband tend to be rural towns or cities where industrial production has collapsed. Compare this situation with London, where there are very few areas that have a particularly low broadband penetration amongst poor families.
Also in the report is statistics that show that children who do not have access to broadband at home not only suffer from a lack of social integration but are also likely to earn much less in their working lives than children who do have access to broadband at home.
One of the big areas of concern is that children without broadband access often cannot perform educational tasks such as school homework. In addition as a general learning resource the internet has a large role to play in child development, the lack thereof can have a big impact.
Government efforts to improve the situation continue, including the goal to give broadband access to all households by 2015. Also the government has introduced efforts to get poorer families online by, for example, giving £500 to families to spend on computer equipment.
BT Total Broadband is a broadband service offering both home broadband service as well as mobile broadband access in the UK. Recently, BT has expanded its offerings into home phone and television service packages. Each service type is offered at a wide variety of service levels, allowing customers to select a plan that best meets their personal use. While each service has its own strengths and weaknesses compared to one another as well as the competition, BT broadband tends to focus on providing a higher quality service at a slightly higher price than its competition.
BT currently offers three levels of service for home broadband, with the highest level of service being inclusive of free telephone service. This plan, priced at £24.99 per month is among the highest priced among its competitors. Despite this shortcoming, the service offers quick downloads at 20 megabits per second, advanced security features, and no limit on bandwidth usage. Their lesser plans offer the same great speeds but with the choice of capping usage at 10 or 40 Gigabytes per month.
In the world of mobile broadband, BT has been expanding their service significantly. They are now able to offer unlimited access at the same 20 megabits per second. This plan is prohibitively expensive for users that do not subscribe to a home service, however is reasonably priced at £7.49 per month for those that do. While these services are offered separately, it’s not advised to purchase them alone.