The broadband industry in the UK has been central to the development of Britain`s digital infrastructure which in turn has allowed huge societal shifts in the way that people communicate with one another and go about their lives.

The amount of new broadband customers signing up for services is increasing despite the credit crunch having a negative impact in other areas and with such choice and variety of service in the market there`s very little restriction on which provider or service you wish to use.

The one downside of this is that it can be difficult to choose a broadband provider to cater to your needs and in many cases people either pay a premium for unnecessary extras or are left with a service which doesn`t meet their broadband needs. Never fear though, as following these tips will help you decide.

Connection Speed and Service Availability

Arguably the most important aspect of any broadband connection is the speed at which data can be sent and received and this is dependent on a number of factors.

Firstly there`s the type of service you choose and what’s available in your area. ADSL broadband, using your existing BT landline, is cheap and widely available, but speeds usually reach a theoretical maximum of 8Mbps and in real life are lower for most customers. Cable broadband can reach up to 50Mbps, but cabled areas account for around 50% of households and the fastest speeds are more expensive. Mobile broadband, which uses 3G networks rather than physical landlines, is also coming down in price and gives you the freedom to surf the net wherever you are in the country, but speeds vary between 3.6Mbps and 7.2Mbps and coverage differs depending on your provider. Check out the top providers listed below to see the connections they offer and the extras in store for new customers:

BT – The BT home hub is the crown jewel of BT`s ADSL broadband package, offering as it does the best Wi-Fi coverage for your home thanks to the Wireless N technology.

Virgin Media – The UK`s only cable broadband provider for consumers offers between 2Mbps and 50Mbps to its broadband customers. You need to take a Virgin Media land line and pay line rental, but they add on extras like free evening and weekend calls and include a free wireless router.

Tiscali – Their 8Mbps unlimited ADSL broadband is certainly value for money. Things get even cheaper if you take a Tiscali home phone package, meaning you don`t have to pay line rental to BT anymore and you`ll get free unlimited off peak calls to UK landlines.

O2 – This mobile provider is consistently voted one of the best broadband providers for home customers in the UK and the prices are even better if you`re an existing O2 mobile customer. Speeds of up to 20Mbps are available on their ADSL broadband package and all the usual extras like a free router and cut rate calls are available

The principle attractions of mobile broadband technology are flexibility, convenience and, of course, mobility. These features, coupled with the fact that the mobile voice market is saturated, meaning that providers are forced to offer competitive capped data packages, means that the technology has quickly gathered pace. In fact, mobile broadband prices fell by 4% in 2008 compared with 2007, if all countries were taken into account, while, in the U.K., prices fell by as much 35% in the same period.

The number of mobile broadband subscribers in Europe increased to nearly 20 million in 2008, thanks to the availability of user-friendly USB (”Universal Serial Bus”) modems, or “dongles”, and new developments, such as HSDPA, “High Speed Downlink Packet Access” technology may see the total number of connections reach 150 million by 2014.

Mobile Broadband Products & Providers

Mobile broadband works in the same way as landline, or cable, broadband, insofar as subscribers sign a contract, typically of 12, 18 or 24 months` duration, and pay a monthly fee for their chosen mobile broadband package. Mobile broadband is available from 3, Orange, T-Mobile, and Vodafone, and prices vary between providers, with speed, monthly download limit, and minimum contract length determining the price of individual packages. Most mobile broadband packages include a USB modem, invariably free of charge these days, which contains a SIM (”Subscriber Identity Module”) and plugs into a laptop computer.

Download speeds of up to 7.2Mbps (”Megabits per second”), which compare favourably with fixed line broadband deals, are possible, but monthly download limits are must more restrictive, typically between 1Gb and 10Gb per month, and 3Gb per month on average. Unlike fixed line broadband deals, where “unlimited” download limits are commonplace, if you`re prepared to pay extra for the privilege, mobile Internet deals must take into account the finite capacity of 3G (”3rd Generation”) mobile phone networks, and the cost of transferring data across them.

Unlimited download limits would place unacceptable strain on the 3G network, leading to slow service and dropped connections, not to mention the high cost of data transfer, when compared to conventional ADSL (”Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line”) or cable broadband connections. These are the factors that are likely to limit the growth of mobile broadband in the short-term – not withstanding the current global economic downturn – but with 3.5G, and 4G, technologies, such as HSDPA, and WiMax, driving the market ever forward, that may not always be the case.

Disclaimer

This website and all the information and sugggestions contained herein are provided “AS-IS”, without warranty of any kind. While the author aims for accuracy, and has tested the content in various systems, the author assumes no responsibility for your use of these suggestions. The author will not be liable for any special, incidental, consequential or indirect damages due to loss of data or any other reason.