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Cheap Mobile Internet ?

I'm a bit clueless when it comes to gadgets, so after some advice please.

I've been thinking it would be nice to be able to access the internet during the far-too-many hours I spend on the train each day - catch up on emails, etc.

I see loads of people with swanky iPhones and what-not, but these seem very expensive to me, and I couldn't justify splashing out £400 on one.

So .... is there a cheap and cheerful way to get mobile internet ? I'm not fussy about the size of the screen or anything like that. I'm thinking of looking at a cheap second-hand laptop - would this be a good bet, and would I need some sort of mobile modem thingy ? Or any other options.

Basically I'm looking for the cheapest way of getting basic internet access on-the-go. I've got a pretty good desktop at home for the heavy-duty stuff, so it's just to while away / waste some time on the commute :-)

Any help / suggestions greatly appreciated.
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Comments

  • gonzo127
    gonzo127 Posts: 4,482 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture Combo Breaker
    lump sum budget?
    willing to have monthly costs if so how much?
    are you on a mobile phone contract if so who with and whats included?
    Drop a brand challenge
    on a £100 shop you might on average get 70 items save
    10p per product = £7 a week ~ £28 a month
    20p per product = £14 a week ~ £56 a month
    30p per product = £21 a week ~ £84 a month (or in other words one weeks shoping at the new price)
  • HappyMJ
    HappyMJ Posts: 21,115 Forumite
    10,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    You can pick up a netbook for around £200 then you'll need a "mobile modem thingy" they can sometimes be free or a small charge then the access charges are at least £10 per month on PAYG.
    :footie:
    :p Regular savers earn 6% interest (HSBC, First Direct, M&S) :p Loans cost 2.9% per year (Nationwide) = FREE money. :p
  • I've seen some good "No Contract - Pay-as-you-go" dongles in ASDA and Tesco. About £15-20 initial purchase. Perhaps worth a look.

    Trevor
  • scotsbob
    scotsbob Posts: 4,632 Forumite
    Last time I travelled on a train there was free WiFi and our local bus company has free Wifi. That would be the best solution.

    If I can't get a WiFi connection then my Asda PAYG gets internet for 20p an MB.
  • Ebe_Scrooge
    Ebe_Scrooge Posts: 7,320 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Thanks folks, plenty for me to look into there. I'll do some digging around based on your suggestions.
  • Chorlie
    Chorlie Posts: 1,029 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture Combo Breaker Photogenic
    Have a look on here: http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Argos-Outlet/Laptops-netbooks-/_i.html?LH_TitleDesc=1&rt=nc&_fsub=1683056016&_sasi=1&_sid=66512606&_trksid=p4634.c0.m14&_sop=2&_sc=1

    You could also use a phone something like the Orange San Fransico, this can be unlocked to work on any network.

    If you're looking at a dongle then you first need to check the coverage in the area of you travel.
  • scotsbob wrote: »
    Last time I travelled on a train there was free WiFi and our local bus company has free Wifi. That would be the best solution.

    If I can't get a WiFi connection then my Asda PAYG gets internet for 20p an MB.

    Thats quite expensive isnt it? Most web pages will download to your mobile at over 10mb so your paying a quid just to look at one web page never mind sending an email
    "If you no longer go for a gap, you are no longer a racing driver" - Ayrton Senna
  • gonzo127
    gonzo127 Posts: 4,482 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture Combo Breaker
    edited 4 November 2010 at 2:21PM
    i dont know which websites you have been looking at but a 10mb wesite would be shocking at the moment, most webpages are a fraction of a mb probably in the region of 0.1mb so although 20p per mb is still an expensive way of browsing it really isnt that bad.

    however it really does depend on your usage either way there will be a upfront cost of either a new mobile phone or a netbook+dongle.

    a mobile phone will eb the cheapest for very low usage 250mb a month or less and the netbook+dongle combination will be cheaper for heavier usages 1gb plus anywhere in the middle you will probably find they will be very close with their monthly cost

    for example orange pay and go do a 'extra' where you get 250mb of internet usage for £5 which lasts for 30 days so all your would need to do is buy the phone where as 3 do there own add on which will give 500mb for £5 for their mobiles

    as for dongles you shoudl expect to pay from £7.50 a month for 1GB on a contract or £10 a month for 1gb on pay as you go, then you can get 3gb for £15 etc
    Drop a brand challenge
    on a £100 shop you might on average get 70 items save
    10p per product = £7 a week ~ £28 a month
    20p per product = £14 a week ~ £56 a month
    30p per product = £21 a week ~ £84 a month (or in other words one weeks shoping at the new price)
  • JJ_Egan
    JJ_Egan Posts: 20,281 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    Cheapest i have found is PAYG Virgin Mobile
    Internet access 30p a day up to 25MB excess charge £2 per MB max 1GB per month .
    Some of the other dearer Virgin tariffs cap the download over usage charge at £1-69 per day .

    jje
  • gonzo127 wrote: »
    i dont know which websites you have been looking at but a 10mb wesite would be shocking at the moment, most webpages are a fraction of a mb probably in the region of 0.1mb so although 20p per mb is still an expensive way of browsing it really isnt that bad.

    True but was using my phone this morning and it counts up in the corner how much each web page is and i was astounded - one page had those annoying flash adverts on and it was well over 1mb.
    "If you no longer go for a gap, you are no longer a racing driver" - Ayrton Senna
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