Guide to Choosing the Best Broadband Plan for the Home

Today, almost every facet of life is surrounded by technology, which increases productivity and makes many things in life easier. You have desktops, laptops, smartphones and tablets. Even homes are now smarter, connecting many appliances in the home to smartphones and tablets for operation, security and monitoring via the Internet.

What is broadband Internet?

Broadband Internet is high speed Internet access. It is faster and always on, compared to the earlier traditional dial-up Internet access. When you talk of broadband, it means technologies for high-speed transmission that can be DSL, wireless, cable modem or fiber.

Broadband plan choices

Choosing the right broadband plan for home depends on several factors. You can consider your location (rural or urban), the broadband package, availability and price. It also depends on your projected usage.

No contract plan

This plan suits those who are renting or are planning to move or simply not ready to commit to a long term plan. This broadband plan does not involve tying yourself to a contract. It is an option that you can renew month to month. However, with a no contract plan, you’re required to have your own hardware, or pay for its full amount upfront from the Internet service provider (ISP).

Fixed-line ADSL2+ connection

If you are looking for the cheapest Internet connection with the highest value, this is a good choice. You will get speeds of up to 24Mbps. Usually bundled with the plan is a ADSL2+ compatible modem. If you have several family members, you can choose one that has a Wi-Fi router included. The service is consistent and the speed depends on how much you are willing to pay. Hardware set up for home network sharing and setting up the Wi-Fi router will require technical knowledge. Likewise, you need a phone line and contract has a lock in commitment of 12 to 24 months.

Naked DSL

Naked DSL has the same inclusions as the fixed-line ADSL2+ connection except that it does not require the subscriber to have a fixed phone line. This plan suits those who mainly use mobile phones to communicate. It does costs more that the fixed-line plan. Initial hardware setup is a bit tricky.

Mobile broadband

For those who move about and you want a portable Internet connection, choose a mobile broadband plan. You can have speeds of up to 20Mbps for a 3G+ modem or 40Mbps for a 4G modem. Aside from the plan, you need to purchase a 3G or 4G modem, either a Wi-Fi modem so you can share the Internet access or a single user USB modem. When you have the modem, you can choose the plan the will work best for you, including a month-to-month plan. The modem can be expensive. The data cost is also higher compared to a fixed line Internet service. There are also several factors that can affect network reception so consistency cannot be guaranteed.

Fibre optic cable

This is the latest Internet service option, which can provide speeds of up to 10Gbps. It is the most expensive among all the plans at the moment. For basic home use, this plan can be a bit too much, and you’ll end up paying for bandwidth that you do not need. It is more suitable for businesses that rely on constant Internet connection. Fibre optic is suitable for situations where several users will all be connected at the same time.

The broadband plan that you will ultimately get should be based on the amount of data included in the package and the price you are to pay. Several ISPs such as Bigpipe or EE offer a variety of good broadband plan options. The monthly fee depends on the upload/download allowance. It you only use the Internet for Skype, social media monitoring, emails and browsing, without video or music streaming, a 75GB plan per month is enough.  If you use the Internet for watching movies on Netflix and stay connected all the time, you should look for a plan that offers a minimum of 600GB a month.