Would I be financially better off if I switched to a dongle?

electric_comperella

Hi guys

I just read Martin's :money: 2 guides to landline broadband and also to dongle connection (sorry don't know technical terms)

and I'm just wondering if I'd be financially better off switching to the dongle.

Y'see I currently have a BT landline which I pay £138.48 pa solely so I can use the internet (phone calls are all made via the mobile)

so in total it costs me £228.48 to access the internet for 1 year.

Any ideas greatly appreciated :A

macman

BT line rental is £11.54 a month or £138.48 pa. And that includes a minimum of weekend calls. So how can you be spending £400 if you make no calls at all?

electric_comperella

good point - I will investigate...

electric_comperella

I pay basic line rental

and then £7.50 to O2 for the internet....

any ideas on something cheaper and mobile?

kwikbreaks

Well they do bill quarterly. Maybe time flies if you're having fun and those 3 months just seem like one....

3G Broadband is designed really for mobile use - when mobile people are grateful to get anything at all which is why the mobile phone companies get away with selling a shoddy product. ADSL even on a long line will normally give a much better experience than 3G unless you happen to live at the base of a mobile mast that nobody else uses. In the real world speeds are variable at best and latency (if it matters to you) is abysmal. If all you want to do is a bit of surfing and some email you may get lucky with locations. I've had a 3G contract for a couple of years and it suits my needs but there is no way in the world I'd ditch my home ADSL and use the dongle instead.

warehouse

If you're lucky then a dongle connection will be just above slow. If you're unlucky it will be like being back on dial up again, but slower. Beware of what you save here, broadband is worth the extra.

macman

electric_comperella wrote: »

good point - I will investigate...

I think you should!
A dongle may be cheaper for occasional use, but it's not an adequate substitute for ADSL broadband unless you are a light user.

macman

electric_comperella wrote: »

I pay basic line rental

and then £7.50 to O2 for the internet....

any ideas on something cheaper and mobile?

So you are actually paying £228.48pa for broadband and line rental, not £400 for line rental alone? So I've just saved you £171.52pa...
That's already one of the cheapest deals around, and O2 LLU (with the 02 mobile discount you are getting) is one of the best services.
If you are on a Market 3 exchange, (which you probably are if you get 02 LLU), you could get Plusnet Value for £5.99 (rising to £6.49 for sign ups after 12/4). However to go from an unlimited to a capped 10GB service for the sake of saving £18.12 a year does not seem worth it to me.
If you are already OOC with O2 you can try negotiating your £7.50 down. Some people have reported getting it for £5 in return for signing for a further 12 months.