Choosing Broadband for a Student House (2008 – 2009)
Posted by David | Filed under Hardware, Student Saving Tips
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Warning: This article is now out of date! We have written a new Student Broadband (2009/2010)Â article now!
After you have got your gas, electricty and water sorted broadband is the next essential item in any student home! There are many ISPs to choose from varying in price, speed and download limit, below is a table of some of the 12 month or less contract ISPs with Unlimited downloads. These packages are broadband only for the main part, although when the extra service is at no extra cost I have included them. If the extra services cost more to get a discount they have been excluded from the table.
Remember when signing up for your broadband to do so via Quidco to save yourself that bit extra!
| Provider | DL | UL | DL Limit | Contract | BT Line | Cost | Wireless Router |
| Be Unlimited | 24 | 1.3 | Unlimited | 3 mths | Required | £18 | Yes |
| Be Value | 8 | 1.3 | Unlimited | 1 year | Required | £14 | Yes |
| O2 Standard | 8 | 1.3 | Unlimited | 1 year | Required | £12.50 | Yes |
| O2 Premium | 16 | 1.3 | Unlimited | 1 year | Required | £15 | Yes |
| O2 Ultimate | 20 | 1.6 | Unlimited | 1 year | Required | £22.50 | Yes |
| AOL Wireless Flexi Broadband* | 8 | 1.3 | Unlimited | 1 mth | Required | £9.99 | Yes |
| Tiscali Broadband* | 8 | 1.3 | Unlimited | 1 Year | Inc** | £12.99 | Yes |
| Virgin Media | 2 | 1.3 | Unlimited | 1 Year | No (Cable) | £17.00 | No |
 * To receive the cheapest packages with Tiscali and AOL you must agree to a call package as well. ** Tiscali will include BT Line Rental in their own costs so you don’t have to pay extra unlike the other options (besides Cable)
I have not included BT on this table due to its low download limits and 18 month contacts, which may be unsuitable for students living in a house only for a maximum of 12 months. Sky has also been excluded as you are required to join up to Sky TV as well, the same is true of the cheaper Virgin Media options - If TV is something you are interested in then these offers may well be worth considering. Talk talk broadband similar to BT offers only 18 month contracts.
My Recommendation
Without any doubt I recommend Be Broadband for every student home! The service is great, the wireless router supplied is good, the download speeds are relatively high and if you get the Unlimited package you dont’ even have to be on a 12 month contract! I’ve had no troubles at all with them in the past. They will even send the router to a separate address if you aren’t living in your student house over the summer!
Be Value is also offering a discount of £8 a month until the end of 2008, which is a deal that may be worth taking, reducing the cost of broadband in a student house greatly!
If you are on O2 for your mobile phone do consider the O2 options for broadband as there are cheaper discounts available for O2 customers. O2 and Be Broadband are able to offer so much higher speeds as they use their own equipment in BT exchanges. They are known as ADSL2 providers, they may not be available on every area of the country yet. If not Tiscali and AOL are possible second choices for those unfortunate enough not to be able to get Be or O2.
I would also recommend looking at these websites to help decide what to get:
- DSL Zone UKÂ gives good ratings on Broadband ISPs service (Be and O2 do fairly well in this, however AOL and Tiscali do not!)
- Samknow Broadband will also give you a good idea of what services are available in your area and for your phone number.
Home > Student Index > Choosing Broadband for a Student House
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Tags: Be Broadband, Broadband, O2 Broadband, Student Broadband, Student Saving Tips
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