January 25th, 2010 | Broadband, Broadband Providers, Broadband Reviews
Tiscali Broadband has long been a household name and a popular choice with the public for broadband provision. The brand was actually purchased by another very well known brand last year, TalkTalk, a company that offers Tiscali Broadband as part of their package deals for broadband, phone services and digital television.
One of the benefits of all Tiscali broadband deals is their free line rental offered to all of their customers. This is due to their use of the local loop unbundled (LLU) network. If you are considering broadband deals purely from the financial aspect, this detail certainly makes Tiscali the cheapest broadband package available, but only if you are lucky enough to be within the LLU area. In fact their LLU customers can benefit from a phone, broadband and digital TV bundle for less than £20 per month.
However, if you are looking for choice from your broadband provider then Tiscali might not be the internet service provider that you are looking for. This is due to the fact that Tiscali is only actually offering one package, but it is a rather generous package given that it comes with unlimited downloads, a free modem and speeds of up to 8Mb.
Other extras that may be of interest to any potential customers of Tiscali include the free installation, free anti virus for email and anti spam software, and if you do encounter any technical difficulties, 24 hour support is only a phone call away.
January 21st, 2010 | Broadband Providers, Broadband Reviews
Sky Broadband services are available to any customers of their digital television subscription service. They do not sell stand alone broadband. Sky Broadband is available with three distinct packages that are also available as a bundle with their Sky Talk telephone service, which subsequently achieves a reduced tariff on the broadband package. Their three separate broadband deals offer speeds of up to 2Mb, 10Mb and 20Mb respectively.
Sky, like many other providers, operates a fair usage policy. In practice, for customers who opt for the unlimited broadband package there are actually no limits whatsoever. However, broadband speeds are regularly checked and it is worth noting that their advertised top speeds are rarely met. It is therefore worth taking the time to compare broadband deals since a more limited usage policy offered by one provider might actually perform faster than an unlimited package; it really depends on what your needs are. A faster broadband service will download large items such as movies much more quickly, but if you want to download ten movies a day then you have no fear of going over your limit if you have an unparalleled fair usage policy or unlimited broadband deal.
Sky Broadband has won some awards in the past 12 months, taking home the Best Bundled Services ISP in the customer satisfaction survey conducted by broadbandchoices.co.uk. They also came third in the Best Overall Provider category. However in the uSwitch awards they were placed second in five categories out of eleven, which included the value for money award.
January 18th, 2010 | Broadband, Broadband Comparison, Mobile Broadband
The use of broadband has increased in leaps and bounds and it is now to be found in many households, businesses and other public and private establishments. This however limited people to accessing the Internet inside their houses and offices with a landline broadband connection. This all changed when mobile broadband became available.
Mobile Broadband is the technology that allows us to access the Internet through the mobile telephone system. This means that you can go anywhere where your mobile phone will work and your laptop can be connected onto the Internet. This is extremely helpful for businessmen that have to be travelling a lot of the time.
The speed of a mobile broadband connection depends on the network coverage in the area. In the UK broadband speeds go from 2Mbps – Megabytes per second – up to a speed of 20Mbps. There is also a monthly download/upload allowance set by the broadband company. Monthly allowances range from 2GB to 40GB and a few offer you an unlimited monthly allowance, this means that you can be online for any amount of time that you wish without having to pay any additional charges.
There are many companies in the UK that offer mobile broadband. Prices average at about £15.00 a month, which usually gives you a monthly allowance 40GB and a speed of up to 20Mbps. There are of course some companies that ask for considerably more per month but those packages come with greater benefits.
January 15th, 2010 | Mobile Phone Recycling
The materials used in the manufacture of mobile phones can be toxic if thrown into a landfill site. Thankfully over 80% of them can be recycled and reused in a variety of applications. With the number of mobile phones constantly increasing in the UK, and with many service providers offering upgrades and new phones on a regular basis, the number of mobile phones being discarded is also increasing. These phones are either left discarded in houses and offices or simply discarded into landfill sites where deadly chemicals such as arsenic, lead and beryllium contained in them can escape into the environment.
In recent years many companies have noticed a need for reconditioned mobile phones in the developing world and have found a supply line by offering consumers in the developed world cash for their old and unused mobile phones. These services not only prevent the contamination of the environment through old mobiles ending up in landfill but also offer mobile communication technology to the developed world at prices that are more affordable than by buying new mobile phones.
Getting cash for mobile phones is as simple as going to a mobile phone recycling website, preparing your old phone, and sending it back to the company in packaging which is provided for you. You can do this in the knowledge that you are not only preventing pollution of the environment, but are also providing mobile technology to the developing world. So if you have an old mobile phone gathering dust in a drawer somewhere it’s worth seeing if you can get some cash for it.
January 14th, 2010 | Broadband Deals, Broadband Providers, Broadband Reviews
O2 Broadband is one of the biggest and most well known mobile broadband providers in the UK, and is also considered to be the best in the actual speed delivered by their system.
Many purchasers of this type of broadband access worry about the quality of service that will be offered to them. With their service O2 Broadband provide a useful 50-day ‘Happiness Guarantee’, which means that when you purchase directly from them you will have a 50-day period to try out their service fully. If you find it unsatisfactory you can just return the modem and you will receive a full refund for any purchase costs, and subsequently have your contract terminated without any fuss.
O2 Broadband offers three packages to choose from, ranging from £7.50 to £17.50 for established O2 Broadband mobile phone customers, plus an additional £5.00 for any other customers not already using their services.
The standard and premium broadband packages are basically the same with just a couple of differences, specifically the speed which is only 8Mbps for the standard package, and one anti-virus software allowance, while it’s 20Mbps for the premium package and anti-virus software for three computers. The Pro package comes with the O2 Wireless Box III with N technology that gives improved coverage, anti-virus software for five computers and a dedicated customer service number.
These things are what make O2 Broadband one of the best Broadband deals you will find in the UK.
January 12th, 2010 | Broadband Deals, Broadband Providers
BE Broadband was the first broadband provider in the United Kingdom that offered a download speed of 24 Mbps and an upload speed of 2.5 Mbps. This is considered as a super-fast broadband connection and comes with unlimited usage, free high-specification wireless modem and an always-on connection.
BE Broadband offers three packages for you to choose from. The BE Value option offers you 8 Mbps of download speed, a 40GB monthly allowance and for only for £7.50 a month. BE Unlimited offers you 24 Mbps of download speed, an unlimited monthly allowance and 1 Static IP and costs £17.88 a month. BE Pro is basically the same as BE Unlimited, however for an additional payment of £4.50, £9.50 or £19.50 a month you get an additional 4, 8, or 16 Static IPs. This would cost £21.97 a month if you choose not to buy any Static IPs
BE has also won a number of awards over the years, such as the “ISP Review Editor’s Pick” in 2009 for best balance in price and performance ISPs. The “Top Average Speed” in 2008 that uses data from providers who have done at least 3000 tests over the year. The “Best Gaming Broadband” in 2008. “Best uncapped broadband” in 2007, where PC Advisors readers, rate, rank and award the best broadband ISP prize. These are some among the 14 awards that they have received from 2007 to 2009.
January 11th, 2010 | Broadband Deals, Broadband Providers, Broadband Reviews
TalkTalk Broadband is one of the cheapest broadband providers in the UK offering you a monthly payment from as little as £18.48, with the line-rental included. TalkTalk Broadband however only has two plans that you can choose from, namely the TalkTalk Essentials and the TalkTalk Pro. You also have to pay £29.99 for the connection fee, however you can get an exclusive web connection that is free.
TalkTalk Essentials gives you a speed of 8Mbps, a monthly allowance of 40GB, a free wireless “G” router, evening and weekend calls to UK landlines, which includes 0870/0845 numbers, and free local calls anytime, all this just for £18.48 (including line-rental) a month and a connection fee of £29.99.
TalkTalk Pro gives you a speed of up to 24Mbps, an unlimited monthly allowance, a free wireless “N” router, free Anti-Virus and Anti-Spam software, and for an additional £2.00 you get a security boost. You also get all the rest that you would receive with TalkTalk Essentials, all for £28.48 – including line-rental – and a connection fee of £29.99.
TalkTalk Broadband also offers a number of boosts, such as the Turbo Boost, which is intended to be used together with TalkTalk Essentials, which will make the download speed reach up to 24 Mbps – for free! The Mega Download Boost, which is worth £4.00 a month, will turn your 40GB monthly allowance into a 80GB monthly allowance. These are just two of the boosts you can purchase from the seven that they offer you.
January 9th, 2010 | Broadband Comparison, Broadband Deals, Broadband Providers
The broadband market is filled with providers who all claim to offer the best deals and business broadband is no exception. The giants of the business broadband world, such as BT, offer excellent deals that make it difficult for the rest to compete. Aside from BT there are other broadband providers who can offer a service that is just as efficient.
Eclipse Internet offer a better service, in some ways, than BT. The download speed of their network is 24Mb and they offer unlimited usage. Every evening, between 11pm and 9am, you can enjoy unlimited downloads (For business bronze users). The Eclipse control panel will help you to prioritise traffic and if you are a business broadband customer, you will receive a Netgear Wireless router, which will enable you to set up an office network with the minimum of fuss. Network security is provided for with the ‘Virus Shield’ and ‘Spam Shield’ programmes and there is also 250Mb of free web space as well as 25 free e-mail addresses.
Plusnet Option 3 costs £25 per month, but it is not the best deal in terms of download speed, as it only operates at 8Mb, which compared to Eclipse is not that great. There is the usual unlimited usage and a free router. This package goes one better than Eclipse in relation to the amount of web space included, which comes in at 100Mb.
January 6th, 2010 | Broadband, Broadband Providers, Broadband Reviews
Tiscali is advertised as being one of the cheapest home broadband services in the UK. The chief factor in how the company is able to offer such cheap broadband deal is the free line rental, thanks to the ‘Local Loop Unbundled’ network. TalkTalk bought Tiscali broadband in 2009 and the downside with this provider is undoubtedly the lack of choice in the type of package that you can purchase. In fact there is only one option, which comes with speeds of up to 8Mb and a free modem. As with most other leading broadband deals, the Tiscali package includes both home phone and digital TV access.
It is nice to know that the package deal also includes the following benefits, the system is set up free of charge, there is free e-mail and anti-spam software. There is also no need to worry too much if there are any problems, as there is dedicated support 24/7.
Customers who have rated the Tiscali home broadband package point to its general reliability and the ease of making monthly payments as its good points. On the downside, the main point of criticism is the time it takes to download content from the Internet. For £20 per month, Tiscali offer a home broadband deal, which includes line rental.
Compared with the Virgin broadband and Sky broadband deals, Tiscali offer a very competitive service that is a close match to the two leading alternatives.
January 4th, 2010 | Broadband, Broadband Comparison, Broadband Providers
Tesco broadband, which is an ADSL service, was launched in 2004. Today it delivers up to 10Mb of speed via a fibre optic cable. Included in the Tesco package is a router and free connection. Tesco is just one of many supermarket chains that provide a home broadband service. For example, Asda not only offer a broadband service, but also include a dongle for wireless Internet access. The dongle devices that are marketed through Asda stores include O2, Vodafone and T-Mobile, giving a range of choice to the consumer.
Prices vary considerably between supermarkets and there are some important factors to consider when deciding on where to purchase your broadband package from. It seems clear that the more that is spent on a broadband package the greater the deal is in the long run.
Tesco offer a total of six broadband packages starting at £13.67 per month, which is widely recognised as being one of the best value packages around. However there are better deals on the market, which can offer more for around the same money. The best Tesco broadband package is the ‘Finest’ option, which is priced at £24.44 per month. This contract offers unlimited downloads and free connection. Download speeds range from 512Kb up to 2Mb, while download limits start at just 3Gb per month.
Sainsbury’s also have various deals on broadband, but certainly not as wide a range as Tesco. A Dongle from Sainsbury’s can cost as much as £50.