ISP problems..... which way to go?

[PriorityOne]

Hi folks,

My daughter goes back to uni. next week and has been trying to sort out a cable internet facility, as her and the flatmate have no need for a phone line.

Last year, they went with Virgin Media and this worked out fine. They cancelled it for the summer and were hoping to set it all up once again for the start of this academic year. Unfortunately, VM have said that they cannot install until November because of capacity problems in the area, which has given my daughter and her flatmate a huge problem!!

Does anyone know of an internet service provider who does not tie people into long contracts or, any other alternative way of fixing up an internet connection quicker than November?

At the moment, we are considering BTs Broadband and Anytime Calls package at £13 a month but are not sure if this can be provided on a cable connection or not. Any thoughts?

Thanks in advance....

[SA Gold]

Re: ISP problems..... which way to go?

Hi,
So a "cabled" service is out, meaning you will need to rely on a conventional BT "line" to run ADSL. :-(

Edit:
Does your daughter, friend have a smartphone cable of sharing a 3G connection? If not, may be worth taking a look at a 3G dongle from 3, Vodafone etc.

[PriorityOne]

Re: ISP problems..... which way to go?

Hi,
So a "cabled" service is out, meaning you will need to rely on a conventional BT "line" to run ADSL. :-(

It looks that way.... yes..... but all the providers other than VM seem to want to tie people into 18 month contracts and she's only at uni. until around May/June next year.

[SA Gold]

Re: ISP problems..... which way to go?

It looks that way.... yes..... but all the providers other than VM seem to want to tie people into 18 month contracts and she's only at uni. until around May/June next year.

Are you referring to an ADSL service here?

[PriorityOne]

Re: ISP problems..... which way to go?

Are you referring to an ADSL service here?

Thanks for your help Missy.

She doesn't need/want a phone line, if that's what you mean; she just needs a broadband service. That's why VM was so convenient last year, as they provided a cable broadband service with no need for a phone line.

[Never-In-Doubt]

Re: ISP problems..... which way to go?

Missy was on about a dongle. An Internet dongle.

Literally shove it in USB and you're away. All mobile firms do them but you usually need a year or payg.

[PriorityOne]

Re: ISP problems..... which way to go?

Missy was on about a dongle. An Internet dongle.

Literally shove it in USB and you're away. All mobile firms do them but you usually need a year or payg.

Oh I see... thanks Niddy. Do you know of any good PAYG ones? She needs to be able to access the net for her coursework, etc but also needs to avoid hefty costs.

[Never-In-Doubt]

Re: ISP problems..... which way to go?

Oh I see... thanks Niddy. Do you know of any good PAYG ones? She needs to be able to access the net for her coursework, etc but also needs to avoid hefty costs.

A tenner a month??

Mobile Broadband on Your Laptop - USB stick mobile broadband packages

[Never-In-Doubt]

Re: ISP problems..... which way to go?

This is the best offer really --> Mobile Broadband USB Stick 615 Black Mobile Phone on Pay Monthly

No contract other than a rolling 30-day period.

[Never-In-Doubt]

Re: ISP problems..... which way to go?

2gb is a lot lol

I use that an hour, as will you but we need it for graphics/FTP etc. a normal user can get a lot for it so long as they don't use it for streaming music/tv/iPlayer etc

I always refer to this as a good guide --> How to calculate the amount data you will use on your smartphone or tablet - House Home - Property - The Independent

[PriorityOne]

Re: ISP problems..... which way to go?

Thank you everyone... we will look into this again later. I'm just off out for a Neighbourhood Watch meeting re. tenants from Hell.... lol

We have also stumbled across a company called Zen that looks interesting. Anyone heard of them?

[SA Gold]

Re: ISP problems..... which way to go?

We have also stumbled across a company called Zen that looks interesting. Anyone heard of them?

Hi,
If you mean Zen then yes. They are a reputable provider but will be ADSL for home purposes.
As already pointed out, 3G dongle is probably the answer for you for temporary purposes.

[ScabHunter]

Re: ISP problems..... which way to go?

Hi P1,

The only phone/broadband provider I know of which doesn't have any extended contract is Infinity Developments Network. You can sign up for a monthly deal and cancel it any time. If there is no telephone line in the building you will need to have that connected first, but IDNet do that at cost price which is less than £50.

In my opinion at least, they are the best in ISP in Britain by a country mile. I've been with them for over six years now with virtually flawless service. They always top the independent ADSL Broadband Checker ratings every month for customer satisfaction.

If you are desperate not to use a phone line, then a dongle which connects through the cell phone network will be the only possibility. The most advanced dongle is the HSPA+ one offered by 3, although independent reviews of the service itself are not positive. I've seen several reviews where people have said that their service was good initially, but once you get beyond the refund period it mysteriously worsens! Moving around brings it back to full capacity, but as soon as you stay in the same place for any length of time you get the poor connection again. I can't verify this as I've never used the service. I think Pixie uses a 3 dongle.

The only dongle I've got is a Vodafone, which I chose because there are no monthly fees. You only pay for what you use. It is slow, though. I wouldn't want to try and manage for long with it or try to use it for anything heavy. I just use it to keep my business running when I'm away from home.

If you've got a laptop, you can always use the Wi-Fi in Wetherspoon cafes and similar places, which in my experience is pretty good, and then just use the cell phone dongle when you are at home. It should be possible to manage quite well like that for a few months.

SH

[PriorityOne]

Re: ISP problems..... which way to go?

Thanks for all your input on this folks..... it's really appreciated.

My daughter stumbled across BT Openzone which operates on pubic hotspots or something, so decided to go with that one; £39 per month but no contract or anything. It just stops when the 30 days are up, by which time... Virgin Media should have sorted themselves out. If not, she may have to look at her options again as this is too expensive to be viable month after month.

[ScabHunter]

Re: ISP problems..... which way to go?

I've just looked at BT Openzone, and it only gives you 4000 minutes within the thirty days. If you were going to be online for eight hours a day, that would mean you would only get just over eight days before it ran out.

It all depends on your needs, of course. For me it would be utterly useless as I'm online for about 15-16 hours every day. I wouldn't even get five days out of it! For occasional use it might be OK, but it is expensive for what it is.

If you're going to pay £39 a month for something, please make sure it is going to be good enough to do what you need.

SH