Few questions about UK broadband (from an Aussie)

Hey guys,

I am from Australia and I have just moved to Scotland. I am getting an apartment here and wanted to sign up with Be's Pro plan for broadband since I cannot get Virgins 50mb internet.

In Aus we have a company called Unwired. With Unwired you can buy a wireless modem plug it into your phone line, connect to it with your PC and your done. Once you open a browser page you get directed to a page that allows you to choose the plan you want and the contract length. You are pretty much connected within 10 min of plugging in the modem. You have full broadband access (not mobile broadband either).

Is there any company in the U.K. that offers a similar service? I work from home and i cannot afford to be disconnected from the net for the 7-10 days it will take Be to connect me. I still plan on signing up with Be but I would also like to sign up with a company similar to Unwired as a backup connection.

Edited by NickBencino (Fri 15-May-09 14:28:14)

The only thing i think , that ticks allot of your boxes , is maybe get a 3G USB dongle and get internet more or less instantly , just by purchasing the dongle , a top up and going mobile .

"3" seem to be the market leader with mobile broadband , but as i don't use it myself , i cant give you the nuts and bolts of the service , but think you can get 1gig of bandwidth for £10 a month , pay as you go ..

Edit: do please check you can receive the service in your area first and please be aware of the over usage charges , which buy all accounts are very expensive ..

Edited by deleted (Fri 15-May-09 15:25:32)

Thanks for the help but I rather not use mobile internet as it tends to be very unstable. The UK seriously has no broadband companies that connect you instantly? That's crazy its been around in Australia for years I would have thought you guys were more technologically advanced than us.

In reply to a post by NickBencino:

Thanks for the help but I rather not use mobile internet as it tends to be very unstable.

But Unwired is a wi-fi service. Anyway, you'll only be using it for a few days until your Be/O2 service is live - if you can get it!

You'll be pleasantly surprised by the lack of limits on some truly-unlimited services available here, rather than the strict limits down under

Welcome to the real world of the homeland.

Fair enough its wifi but it has decent speed and its quick to set up. I trade the stock markets so i always need a backup I was planning on getting some sort of quick setup service as a backup for Be. That way in the even that Be was down I would not lose any money to the markets.

Are there any quick setup wifi services here in the U.K. that are similar to unwired?

http://www.unwired.com.au/unwired/

As for the Aussie restrictions.... they suck I am a heavy downloader and use to spend $600 AUD per month on my internet connection. That's roughly 270 pound per month.

Worse comes to worse iI will buy a 3 usb dongle but I am not crazy about the idea. USB dongles in Aus suck I cant imagine they are much better here.

Thanks for the help guys.

Oh by the way Be's fair usage policy.... lets say i download 200 gig in a month? would I egt a warning letter?

Edited by NickBencino (Fri 15-May-09 17:38:53)

In reply to a post by NickBencino:

As for the Aussie restrictions.... they suck I am a heavy downloader and use to spend $600 AUD per month on my internet connection. That's roughly 270 pound per month.

If you're prepared to spend that much I'd suggest two ISPs- one via the phone line and the other via cable.

Should be reasonably fireproof...

If you want to find out what's available, use samknows.com but I don't think there's anything similar available.

If you can get Be/O2 and you go for O2, you can get a discount with O2 if you have a O2 mobile (rather than a USB dongle however).

Be/O2 is unlimited.

How does cable internet work? Does it come through the same cables as Sky television or something?

I take it back you guys do have heaps more options. I have been reading up on internet in the UK. Shame I cant get Virgin a 50mb connection that would be awesome.

Thanks for the link to samknows.com it has helped a lot.

Is there any way for me to check the expected speeds I would get from my new address based on how far it is from the exchange?