ISPs explained
If you will be continually on the 'Net, uploading and downloading large files then you will require a high-speed connection. Alternatively, if your only use will be sending and receiving emails, and browsing web pages then you will not require a high-speed connection.
It is advisable that if you are a business looking to get online, you consider your entire Internet requirements. Will you be requiring a website, e-commerce solutions, access from around the World or just web browsing and email capacities?
There are ISP's that cater specifically for business/ corporate customers whom provide complete Internet solutions, whilst there are others who will only provide, connection, web space and an email address, normally this will include the name of their server to, for example jeremy@freeserve.co.uk and not your company name. To have your own domain name (i.e. www.uk-isp-directory.co.uk ) can be an important marketing feature when communicating with potential customers.
Ok, so what do ISP's have to offer home users besides Internet access and an email address? The answer is a lot. When you sign up for an online account with the larger companies, you gain access to an online community, providing you with news, information, weather, travel news, chat rooms, the ability to access your emails away from your home computer through a web browser and a whole host of other services.
How much do you intend to use the Internet? If you will use the Internet on a frequent basis it will probably prove cheaper to have a monthly subscription to an ISP that allows you to surf the Internet on a free phone number in return for a monthly fee. If you are unlikely to use the Internet on a regular basis it is best to sign up with a free ISP which means you will only pay telephone charges per minute you are online, normally charged at the same rate as a local call.
If you are a parent and you want your children to use the Internet safely then it is a good idea to look for an ISP that provides a filtering service. This will reduce the risk of your children being able to view unsuitable material and access certain sites.
Before buying consider what other home entertainment systems you have that you receive bills for. Some companies provide telephone, digital TV and internet access as part of one singular package, and at a cheaper rate.
Before signing up with an ISP, familiarise yourself with the jargon used to describe certain features. If you do not understand anything that a sales assistant may be talking about, make sure he/she explains it to you in a manner that is understandable to non-technamaniacs!
Terms and conditions are important, so make sure you read and understand all agreements before signing anything.
The options
ISP packages usually fall into the following five categories:
Pay-as-you-go - If you only use the Internet for email and occasional
browsing, say a few hours a month, then this is probably your best option. These
services are often misleadingly called 'free' - you don't pay a monthly fee, but
you do have to pay for your Internet phone calls. These are usually charged at
a local rate, so an hour's connection on a BT line would cost you about 90 pence
off-peak, £2.40 peak. Pay-as-you-go accounts are usually very quick and
easy to set up, sometimes you don't even have to register your address, the ISP
will just display the necessary access details online or email them to you straight
away.
Off-peak deals - If you use the Internet fairly frequently, but only
in the evenings and at weekends, there are numerous deals that give you unlimited
access at off-peak times for a fixed price per month. Many of these packages are
in conjunction with BT SurfTime, meaning that you pay a monthly fee to both BT
and your ISP, but now there are cheaper products available without the need for
SurfTime. Expect to pay £5-10 per month.
Unmetered access - At one point it looked as though there would never
be reliable and affordable unmetered access in the UK, but it seems as though
we have just about got there - and it's now amongst the cheapest access in the
world. Again, some packages are in conjunction with BT SurfTime, but this can
work out expensive. There are now many FRIACO products offering fixed-price unmetered
access for £10-20 per month for home users, but alamost all of these still
require a BT line. You do have to be careful though - many ISPs have been unable
to sustain an unmetered service, leaving many subscribers high and dry. Performance
tends to be poorer than for other dial-up services and you also have to watch
the terms and conditions - some ISPs will restrict what you can download or place
cut-off times to prevent continuous use. It's often wise to pay more for a premium
service that gives you a better contention ratio and less restrictions. There
are unmetered packages available for business use, but these tend to be much more
expensive.
Subscription - There are lots of subscription packages where you pay
a monthly fee and for your phone charges too. This isn't as ridiculous as it sounds,
especially for business users. You often get a quicker more reliable service with
good technical support and other services - although it doesn't always follow.
Broadband - If you use the Net a lot and are prepared to pay for speed,
go broadband. This gives you always-on, unmetered access at almost ten times the
speed of a standard modem. Some of the best value deals are through the cable
companies, where you can get high-speed Internet from just £25 per month
if you subscribe to their other services. If you are not in a cable area, or if
you are a business customer, you'll probably have to go for ADSL. Prices have
been cut significantly recently and you can can a self-install package from £22
per month for home-users, although there is usually set-up fee of around £60
and you'll have to pay around £100 for a modem. ADSL is still not available
in many areas, particularly in rural regions, but satellite connections are available
from £60 a month. See the Broadband section for
more information.
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