BROADBANDCHOICES.CO.UK OFFER STUDENTS HINTS AND TIPS ON CHOOSING A BROADBAND PACKAGE
Going without broadband is simply not an option for a generation that has come to rely on the internet, but on a student budget many baulk at the cost. Broadband is a basic necessity for university life, allowing students to socialise, conduct research, do their shopping, catch up on TV programmes and keep on top of their finances.
Michael Phillips, product director, Broadbandchoices.co.uk commented:
“Whether you are heading off to university for the first time or heading back to do your final year a broadband connection is essential. Many students may feel that they can’t afford such a luxury – but this couldn’t be further from the truth.
“Mobile broadband is an excellent option for cash strapped students as it has become very cost effective in recent years. A mobile connection gives you freedom to connect wherever you need to – in halls of residence, the park, the train – and also removes the thorny issue of splitting yet another utility bill with your house mates. Furthermore, going mobile means you can ditch the additional cost of line rental, a move which could save you up to £144 per year.”
Michael Phillips also believes that for some student houses, the best solution could be to go for a fixed-line broadband connecti “If you are in a large student house and don’t mind sharing, then we would recommend a high speed broadband package with a speed between 20Mb to 50Mb. A service like Virgin Media’s 50Mb XXL service, will allow housemates to all download large files concurrently without degradation to broadband speeds, so there will be no arguments about who is clogging up the house internet connection”
Top tips for buying mobile broadband
Students who are unsure of what to look out for when choosing a mobile broadband package can follow Broadbandchoices.co.uk’s hints and tips below to ensure they are not caught out with a bad broadband deal:
1. Go Monthly – If you are unsure of how your finances will be in 9 months time and worried about signing up to a long term contract, then a monthly deal could be the way to go. O2 currently offer a 1 month contract for £10 with a 1GB download allowance, and one of their dongles free.
2. Download with caution – Mobile broadband deals do not always have the most generous download allowances, so you need to be careful and not go over your usage cap with too many episodes of Skins! Excess usage costs can mount up to a lot of money, so keep an eye on the limits set on your contract.
3. Beware of so called ‘freebies’ – A free laptop may look pretty enticing but you should always compare the cost of an equivalent broadband package and laptop purchased separately before signing up. These offers frequently turn out to be poor value for money and you could find yourself paying for your ‘freebie’ after all through an extortionate monthly tariff.
4. Check your coverage – A mobile broadband connection isn’t much use if your chosen provider doesn’t have coverage in your area – rural areas are particularly unreliable. It is essential to do a postcode search with your chosen provider before signing up as patchy coverage could mean you are left without a connection when you need it most. Most mobile broadband providers offer a money back satisfaction guarantee in the first few days, so you can test the connection in your home. But if the signal is poor, don’t delay in taking it back.
5. UK Only – Keep mobile broadband surfing to UK shores as the costs of data usage charges when using your dongle overseas could multiply up to 000’s of pounds.
Broadbandchoices.co.uk’s mobile broadband package recommendations for students:
| Provider | Package | Speed (up to) | Usage limit | Excess usage | Contract length | One-off cost | First year | Monthly cost | Notes |
| O2 | 500MB | 3.6MB | 500MB | 2.4p/MB | 1 month | £19.99 | £79.99 | £5.00 | 1 |
| Orange | Racoon | 7.2MB | 1GB | 5p/MB | 1 month | £33.98 | £153.98 | £10.00 | 2 |
| Vodafone | Starter | 7.2MB | 3GB | 1.46p/MB | 1 month | None | £180.00 | £15.00 |
Source: Broadbandchoices.co.uk, correct as at 16/08/2010
Notes
1 Includes unlimited access to over 7,500 Wi-Fi hotspots in the UK with The Cloud
2 You must be an Orange mobile phone customer to qualify for this offer, dongle costs £29.99 with a £3.99 charge for P&P
About Broadbandchoices.co.uk
Broadbandchoices.co.uk was launched in 2005 and is the UK’s leading Ofcom accredited broadband comparison calculator.
We offer comprehensive and impartial advice on broadband, mobile broadband and bundled packages (broadband with home phone and digital TV) saving our users over £200 when they switch.
The Broadbandchoices.co.uk calculator compares thousands of different combinations of packages and provides results in a clear, intuitive table where users can rank and compare services according to their individual needs.
Users can switch online or by calling our sales team on 0800 232 1279.
Broadbandchoices.co.uk powers over 20 leading comparison services including Confused.com, Comparethemarket.com and GoCompare.com.
Broadbandchoices.co.uk – working hard to save you money
Compare Breakdown Cover customer satisfaction
There is no need to buy European breakdown cover single trip protection ever again. Why is this? Because when one purchases Green Flag breakdown’s Euro Plus plan for a given vehicle the over cost is so low as to make a any other European Breakdown Cover Comparison unnecessary. Green Flag offers their top of the range breakdown cover plan from just 118 pounds. This plan allows for up to 90 days protection whilst abroad every year. So unless you are an Expatriot living in Turkey you should be well covered with this plan.
Basic Breakdown cover comparison for travel within the United Kingdom can sometimes cost far more than the Euro Plus price. Of course this is based on one vehicle and often one chooses to purchase cover that offers assistance for any car the driver maybe using. Some of these more broadly based breakdown cover plans even include motorcycle breakdown cover. And if your car (or Motorbike) is more than 15 years old you will always save more with a plan based upon you as a driver as opposed to you driving one particular car.
Green flag breakdown reports that their average response time for call out is less than 30 minutes. No wonder that 96% of all Green Flag Customers surveyed stated that they would gladly recommend this, the lowest priced cover in the UK to their friends. The key to getting a great low price for breakdown cover is to combine all the services you need under one umbrella of a plan. The key to choosing that plan is to compare all of the major cover companies.
Mobile Choices Comments on LG’s ‘Simple’ Smartphones.
Some people love having the latest touch screen smartphones, loaded with every gadget and app under the sun. Others, however get confused by such gadgetry, and want a phone that is just that – a phone! Easy to make calls with, and does very little else.
Mobile phone company LG is set to launch a mobile handset range that tries to bridge the gap between the a smartphone, and a basic handset.
The handsets in the range are called: ‘The Cookie’, ‘Cookie Style’ and ‘Cookie 3G’, and the whole range has touchscreens, and scaled down support for social network sites, like Facebook and Twitter.
The business development manager for Mobilechoices.co.uk had this to say about the news:
“LG’s three Cookie phones prove that touchscreen smartphones are no-longer the preserve of early-adopters and geeks.”
Unlike many handsets, ‘The Cookie’ has phsyical buttons on the exterior of the phone for the basic phone functions, like making calls, and has a screen size of just under 2 and a half inches.
The ‘Cookie Style’ handset has a style that appears to be more geared to the younger market, with different colour options, and a slightly larger screen.
For those wanting the option of fast internet access, the ‘Cookie 3G’ has the ability to connect via the 3G network (in fact, it is the only one of the three handsets to offer this).
About Mobile Choices:
Mobilechoices is a leading mobile phone comparison website, that helps its readers to decide what handset, mobile network, and tariff is right for them. So, no matter whether you are looking for a handset like a Sony Satio, or you want to read a Motorola Milestone Review, Mobilechoices.co.uk is the site for you.
Virgin HD Box for 3D slow in coming
Sky TV holds one extremely important advantage over competitors such as Virgin Media and BT Television. When Virgin Media wishes to send a complicated digital signal for TV or broadband through its fibre optic system, it must convert that signal into a pattern of light so as to make it travel along the Virgin optic pipeline. That same signal must then be reconstructed as a digital impulse of binary code before it is again converted into the assortment of pixilated colored light that we view. For this reason Sky TV packages can be delivered into your home more cheaply than that of Virgin Media. In contrast, Virgin Media’s fibre optic network represents a two-way street allowing you to both receive and send data at ultra high speeds. We cannot at this time uplink to the Sky TV satellites. In this area Virgin is more competitive and as a result offers great prices for Broadband.
All of this leads to Sky TV now providing a dedicated 3D channel to their subscribers by means of the Sky HD box. This set top box has the ability to translate the signal received on your satellite dish into super high definition broadcasts as well as the new 3D programming. Virgin Media is lagging slightly behind in this area but does have a Virgin HD box with 3D capability in the works.
Bear in mind that handling of data by means of a fibre optic cable does require an additional interface. Still once Virgin Media gets their 3D conveyance system online it will easily rival the ability of the Sky TV system.
Ofcom has sharper teeth as of January 2011
Beginning in January of 2011 consumer protection agency for telecoms, Ofcom will be empowered to take enforcement action against any home phone or broadband provider serving the United Kingdom who fails to fairly resolve any consumer complaints. At the present time Ofcom assists consumers indirectly by setting guidelines for service providers but those guides are little more than suggestions. While it is true most of the major United Kingdom phone line providers feel it prudent to follow Ofcom’s suggestions, too often consumer complaints are not responded to for months on end. UK telecoms will now be required to document any issues on the customer’s paper billing. This will establish a traceable time frame for any action taken or failed to be taken by the companies.
These regulations will also apply to companies such as Virgin Media who, due to use of proprietary fibre optic networks are not strictly classified as landline providers.
Disputes such as price of line rental when compared to incentive packages arise frequently as customers discover their next door neighbor paying far lower rates can now be addressed and acted upon with more force. Ofcom has approved two agencies to assist consumers in dealing with telecoms problems those being, CISAS and Otelo. Consumers pay only postage and photocopying costs when assisted by CISAS and Otelo in arbitration of complaints. Another simple option when faced with overwhelming aggravation for one’s home phone company is to investigate switching providers. Websites such as Home Phone Choices are available with complete free information on how to make such a change.