When I first got Broadband I was using about 300mb a month - I chose the Telecom "Everyday" plan which gave me 1Gb per month with a download speed of 1mbs and 192kbs upload. If I went over the 1Gig I got bombed back down to the sluggish dial-up speed of 64kbs for the rest of the month.
I never thought that I'd use so much and, what the heck, there was no charge if I did. Little did I know that there is no pain quite like hitting that limit wall and sliding bleeding back into dial-up hell. Waiting for pages to load with monotonous slowness with the images even t u a l l y l o a d i n g. Actually in ain't that slow but damn it is annoying.
The cause of my angst was the introduction by alan to Flickr and using the wonderous Frogprints to print the most impressive 7x5 matt pictures. Before long I was up to 750Mb and then over the 1Gb for the last two months in a row....and I still have so much to find...and 3 hours until the 1st of the month and back to 1mbs......arrrgggg
From what I read, Telecom are one of the few broadband providers in the world that put a cap on usage. Twats. At the time I signed-up there was no real competition and the fact that they control the services still strangles competition. I got a free D-Link modem from Telecom and a contract for 12 months at $44 per month and they stung me for an installation fee of $100 (as we have an alarm system that apparently interferes with broadband...yeah right).
However, I notice that iHug have got a lovely new offer. They do a 2mbs connection with 20Gb off-peak plus 20Gb on-peak and (this is the best bit) uploads don't count to your totals. This means that I could actually drop down to their 1Gb plus 1Gb offer as it is my uploads that suck up my allowance. I'd have to be downloading movies or something to need the 20+20Gb but now I'm thinking of bit torrent and the next season of Lost...........and the pretty cool Threshold that an unnamed source has been pulling down for me....
When my 12 months expires, I am outta here and jumping to iHug. I notice from my web site stats that nobody uses iHug that comes here. If you are an iHug user and you're just stopping by, any feedback on their service would be appreciated. My stats also tell me that there are a lot (and I mean a lot) of people looking for pictures of Hooters Girls in Pantyhose and Hooters Girls Feet. I hope you find them but you won't find them here. To the person looking for "Do Hooters Girls take tests?", you are overqualified.
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I really do think we're on the verge of something much better on offer in NZ. It will happen soon hopefully. iHug's deal is pretty sweet compared to Telecomstealmymoney's plans. Will look into this more once home. If you quit a contract you usually only have to pay something towards your "free" modem. Do the sums...
ReplyDeleteMy woosh only comes with a small usage allowance, but I've noticed that there is no marked slowing down when it is restricted. Mind you, I don't download any movies.
ReplyDeleteWhich leads to my next question. Where do you download movies and tv shows from?
I'm with Actrix, who do a nice 2mbit 30GB/month plan with daily caps after using 1GB, returning to full speed at midnight. A lot easier to manage than monthly caps.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, i've been watching Threshold and i'm fascinated with it. Such potential, yet it's like watching a slow-motion car crash. (Watching it is something of a guilty pleasure, if only to see what ridiculous tv-science occurs this episode, or how they misuse logic to justify doing something foolish that doesn't help the story...)
I'm much more enthused about Surface, another new US series which is the best character-based drama i've seen in some time (that just happens to feature 200ft long sea monsters).
The new season of CSI: New York is a winner as well - although that shouldn't really be surprising.
Hi Brena: I'll do the numbers - anything to stiff Telecom!
ReplyDeleteMartha: alan is the king of bit torrent - Brena has a link to a neat application called µTorrent on her site which I downloaded but haven't managed to get to work yet as my firewall is being difficult. Take a look at www.isohunt.com for all the files - I believe this is where alan gets his gems from. I'll bribe him with coffee tomorrow to post some hints and tips!
Hi Kiwired: I'll take a look see at Actrix tar. I know what you mean wrt Threshold - I thought the first episode a bit weak with the nerds being just so nerdy but it has settled down well and is good brain candy. Haven't come across Surface so cheers - one more to add to the list of things I will have to watch hunched in the corner with the PC as Mrs R enjoys the comfort of the sofa! On CSI, that Jerry Bruckheimer is a genius - the man that brought us Top Gun, The Amazing Race, Cold Case, Without a Trace to name a few - check out his Wiki write-up.
Thanks Mr R, I'm all ears. I remember something a while ago on Noizy's blog, but I didn't really get it...
ReplyDeleteMake Alan do all the work. I could bribe with coffee, but you'd have to come to Petone.
Alan, I know you've read this now stop hiding from me.....I have coffee....it's hot and calling out your name.....c'mon you know you want it....
ReplyDeleteoooooo - Surface does sound good - character-based! sea-monsters! Sounds like the thing that'll tide me over until the return of Galactica in January. I shall have a look forthwith!
ReplyDeleteWe have always been on Dial up. Is being on Broadband so much faster? A part from that, what are the other advantages?
ReplyDeleteBroadband will change your life Pinky. It is like always eating at McDonalds and one day wandering into Burger King - there is no going back.....
ReplyDeleteAll right. Enough. I have been playing with this bit torrent thing for an hour and I can't get it to download anything. C'mon alan, have you no compassion....
ReplyDeleteDone.
ReplyDelete