Domain Name Registrar

I currently have my Domain Name registered with my ISP (which is not ideal)

I want to register a new domain name, and have my eye on getting some of the really short .co.uk domain names when they come out in a couple of months.

So what I want is a good domain registrar.

Reliability is an absolute must, and price is a preferable.

I don't need web or email hosting services (I'll get them from a separate company when or if I do) what I need is control over DNS entries, DNS services, and the ability to register domain names etc.

What do the good people of think broadband advise?

Oh yes, support for DNS wildcards would be nice too, but not essential.

There's only going to be a couple of thousand of them, and I'll bet every one will become an auction as domain name companies and profit opportunists bid for all of the them. Individuals wanting them for use for legit sites will be elbowed out methinks.

you're probably right. But that doesn't invalidate my question, I still want a decent domain registar.

And I would appreciate the advice of the good folks of TBB

Godaddy

Take a look at www.namecheap.com to register domain names

In reply to a post by BatBoy:

Godaddy

Are you serious?

I've used www.just-the-name.co.uk for years without any problems.

£9.99 for 2 years. (includes VAT)

I use GoDaddy for my .com domains. Are you aware of any problems with them?

You mean apart from issuing insecure SSL certificates?

Or pulling a domain from the registrant for the most tentative of reasons, and then selling it on at a profit?

Or pulling a security site offline because of a complaint from Myspace?

No, I know of nothing wrong with godaddy.


Oh, and for those with an interest in animal welfare the CEO likes posting videos of himself shooting elephants too.

I would recommend Easily at http://easily.co.uk/
I have been with them for seven years and they haven't gone bust yet unlike many others!!
Also, have you thought of having a ".eu" domain name. Nice and short and lots available cheaply. Hope this helps.

Are there any large registrars who don't have similar complaints (apart from shooting elephants, all the rest shoot rhinos)?

None that have stuck in my mind quite so much as godaddy.


But that is why I am asking for the experiance of others, and why I asked BatBoy if he was serious (That and I have seen him give advice of questionable validity before)

www.domainmonster.com

When Fasthosts (UKReg) had their password screw up some years ago now, that was the final straw. I moved everything away from UKReg. But to where? I hunted like crazy for a UK based company (so, no GoDaddy-ness for me) until I found DomainMonster. Very helpful company, based in Surrey, small, but definitely a big player that keeps its head below the water line (as most people I mention them to have never heard of them). They have a very functional control panel, and all the usual features you would need/expect. I host all my domains with them, bar one.

The one exception is a domain I moved away from them to www.joker.com instead - simply because, joker.com allow IPv6 glue records on name severs of a domain, whereas DomainMonster do not. DM also don't support AAAA records (and no indication from them of when that will change either), another downer for anyone who's an IPv6 fanatic.

Why Joker? Used them before, very slick system, comparable, if not better than GoDaddy, but without all the flash website images of pretty girls filling up your browser (you know, if I wanted to see that [censored], I'd go and visit the Sun website, and click on page 3).

Don't get me wrong, my last place of employment used GoDaddy for everything. I've used their portal, and it's all good, but I've read too many horror stories about what the company is, how it operates, and all that negative PR has made me dismiss them as a domain name registrar I would ever consider using (cheapest is not always best, but you've heard that many times before I'm sure).

So, in short, for me I use mostly DomainMonster, except for the IPv6 geekyness requirement on 1 domain, where I use joker.com instead.

My 2p worth.

Edited by mixt (Thu 21-Apr-11 22:36:13)

Late to the thread but I can recommend http://register1.net
A docklands based registrar whom I have used for years.

1 click google apps mx records and full DNS control.

Utterly reliable host / registrar.

Sensible prices too.

tsohost, £5.99 inc. vat per 2 years.

In reply to a post by pmb00cs:

Oh, and for those with an interest in animal welfare the CEO likes posting videos of himself shooting elephants too.

Are you serious?

I can vouch for Easily too. Been with them since 2001 without any problems.They used to use joker.com based in Holland to register high level domains I seem to remember but are now independent as far as I know.
I also use HeartInternet and have been very happy with them. They are a bit cheaper too.

As it happens, on that particular point, not really.

In reply to a post by john2007:

Are there any large registrars who don't have similar complaints (apart from shooting elephants, all the rest shoot rhinos)?

Many of them give nice homes to Penguins.

So far, I have never heard any issue about the Godaddy service and Namecheap service. Many of our cients have their domains registered at Godaddy and Namecheap. There should not be any problem in registering domain name with these two registrars. And since, both of them are purely into domain registration business, you can trust them easily.

I haven't yet seen a recommendation for 123-reg yet, which surprises me as they are the biggest registrar in the UK now, and I have used them without any issues for multiple domain names for over 9 years now.

matt

I've used 123reg for about 10-11 years, and have multiple domains and on a seperate webhosting company. Prices for UK specific domain names is cheap for 2 years, but extra costs for .com names manageable.

In reply to a post by pmb00cs:

Oh yes, support for DNS wildcards would be nice too

Are there still DNS providers who don't support * entries ?

The only problems i have seen with registering a domain is some companies don't give you full control of them. and when you want to move away they charge a fee.

In reply to a post by matthewlowry88:

I haven't yet seen a recommendation for 123-reg yet, which surprises me as they are the biggest registrar in the UK now, and I have used them without any issues for multiple domain names for over 9 years now.

matt

Another for 123 reg here, used for them years, no problems whatsover, even easier to manage stuff with their new interface

I think you only really get those kind of problems when you order them from smaller companies that rely on domains / hosting / web design. Some web designers will register a domain in their own details rather than the company they are doing the work for, then when the customer wants to move away or do something they charge extortionate fees, COWBOYS!

I can vouch for 123-reg, never had a problem, really easy to manage DNS & Nameservers.

I use 123-reg.co.uk for my UK domains. Godaddy for others.

I have used a number over the years but have now moved the few .uk domains I have (about 5% of over a hundred domains) to 123-reg

I'd always recomend and use a US-based firm for .com and similar as prices are relatively high over here (from all firms) IMO, but that's not significant in your case.

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