When it started trading in 1997, Plusnet was simply offering a plain 56Kb dial-up internet service. Today it has over 200,000 customers and offers several exceptionally competitive ‘bundles’ (deals which integrate internet connection, home phone, line rental and VolP internet-based phone calls). Plusnet’s ‘Value’ broadband package offers a 10 GB download allowance, free downloads between midnight and 8.00am and connection speeds of up to 8Mbps. Moving up a gear, the ‘Extra’ package offers a thumping 60GB download allowance, free overnight downloads and speeds of up to 20 Mbps.

Plusnet Broadband has won a veritable smorgasbord of awards over the years for its high standards of customer care, reliable service and fast speeds, and it continues to have the virtue of offering the cheapest stand-alone broadband service currently available in the UK market. For anyone on a tight budget, Plusnet Broadband is an excellent option. As small internet service providers go, it’s deservedly become one of the most popular.

This doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to put up with tooth-grindingly slow speeds, however; there are some measures you can take to give that Megabit rate a little nudge. You may not reach the maximum speeds advertised by providers like BT Total Broadband, Sky broadband, Tiscali broadband, and O2 broadband, but you may be able to move from a painful limp to something more like a steady jog. If you can afford the slightly eye watering monthly fee of £50, you might try switching to Virgin Media, the only internet service provider currently offering speeds of 50 megabits per second via it’s super-fast fibre optic network.

But some useful ‘in-home’ measures include keeping your modem and router clear of other electrical appliances (they can interfere with efficiency), always using the latest versions of web browsers like Internet Explorer or Firefox, ensuring you’ve put micro-filters on your phone and internet socket to reduce interference, and turning your router off if you’re just using the PC and no other devices in the house are accessing the internet (routers can slow down the connection). The speed increase will be more like moving from a 30 mph road to a 50mph road than a test drive with Jenson Button. But you won’t have to grind your teeth quite so hard.

When looking at broadband, UK customers have a variety of companies to make broadband comparisons from. Companies such as Virgin Media Broadband offer a variety of packages ranging from standard 10mb connections up to 50mb connections, in addition to offering mobile broadband and dial-up services. There are also companies such as Tiscali Broadband, Sky Broadband, and BT Total Broadband, all of who offer a number of services to their customers, so no matter whether someone needs a personal broadband connection or a business broadband connection they have the option available.

Whether you are looking at business broadband, personal broadband, mobile broadband or wireless broadband, there are a number of broadband deals through the various companies, so it really comes down to having a little bit of patience and the ability to read through the fine print to determine which company is going to be right for you.

Rates tend to vary across the board depending upon the speed of the connection, the length of the contract, and where an individual lives. For example, some companies like TalkTalk Broadband offer packages as low as £7 a month, while companies such as Virgin Media Broadband are nearly double the rate for the lowest packages. However, when looking beyond the face value attached, one can discover that the amenities included with each package are distinctly different, so basing your decision on the monthly rate is not necessarily the most educated decision you can make. Instead, look at whether or not there is a download cap on the connection, how long the contract is, if there is a setup fee, whether or not you have to rent the modem, as well as anything else you can think of.

The award-winning service provider PlusNet Broadband, for instance, is now offering no contract deals on its ‘Value’ and ‘Extra’ packages. You’ll be able to cancel with just 10 days notice without penalty, although you will have to pay for your router (£40 for a wireless router, £20 for wired). You can also opt for short contracts from AOL Broadband and BE Broadband.

As an alternative, you might consider opting for a mobile broadband supplier, most of which offer short-term contracts as well as ‘pay as you go’ deals. Be aware, though, that from the suppliers’ perspective, the loss of income from a long term contract will have to be recovered in the price of the shorter deals, they are a little more expensive month by month (you’re likely to end up paying the same over 9 months as you would over twelve months on a longer contract). If you’re planning on moving home shortly, a short term or no contract may be ideal, but don’t be unduly afraid of a twelve month term if you’ve already moved and are settling in, it’ll be noticeably cheaper.

Orange Mobile Broadband

Orange’s mobile broadband has speeds of up to 3.6Mbps and 3GB download limit, setup and USB modem are free meaning that you just have to plug and play. Orange Mobile Broadband costs £7.50 for the first 3 months and £15 thereafter. You can also add more download limit whenever you want, it costs £5 for 1GB, £10 for 3GB, £15 for 5GB and £20 for 10GB.

Vodafone Mobile Broadband

Vodafone mobile broadband has a download limit of 3GB per month and connection speeds of up to 7.2Mbps. Setup and USB modem are free and the modem also comes with a microSD card slot that can hold up to 4GB cards, meaning that you can easily transfer files and folders to other computers. Vodafone mobile broadband costs £5 for the first 3 months and £15 a month after and is a 24 month contract.

As you can see both packages are similar both offering 3GB download limits for £15 per month, but Vodafone’s deal may just prove more popular because of its faster connection speed and built-in memory stick functions.

It seems that many people naively believe that because they’re with a reputable broadband provider like TalkTalk Broadband, 02 Broadband, Think Broadband or one of the supermarket services like Tesco Broadband, they must be safe. But, alas, this is most definitely not so. The bad news about wireless broadband is that, without protection, it’s notoriously easy to hitch a ride on; four million people admitted hijacking someone else’s wireless network in the last year.

Most of these casual hijackers are not necessarily doing anything sinister, other than trying to hitch a free ride: they just fire up their devices in the vicinity of someone’s wireless set up. But if it’s your service they’re secretly surfing, they could land you with a hefty bill, when they breach your service provider’s download cap, you’ll be expected to pay for their excesses. Some illicit hijackers are also trying to steal personal data, so security simply cannot be regarded as an optional extra.  Essential safeguards include ensuring that your router uses ‘Wi-Fi protected access’ (WAP) encryption rather than the older ‘wired equivalent protection’ (WEP). WAP is more complex and more secure. Always know your download limit (it’ll be in your contract) and stay within it, and use the latest firewall and anti-virus software.  Be safe, be secure and enjoy your broadband connection.

One of the great features of this broadband package is that you don’t need to set up BT line rental, because the cost of line rental is included in the price. Orange Broadband Home max gives you speeds of up to 20Mbps, unlimited monthly usage and unlimited phone calls to UK lines, as well as McAfee anti-virus software and 150MB of webspace.

Orange Home Max cost £20 per month including the £10.50 line rental, making it just £9.50 a month for your broadband and phone calls. Customers of Orange’s pay monthly mobile phone contracts can get further reductions, with the package dropping to £17 saving you £3 a month.

This is a great package for intermediate to heavy internet users or families with multiple computers and is great value for money, especially if you have an Orange mobile phone contract.

The package costs £33 for the first 3 months and £38 per month after that, which may seem a tad expensive, but this package is geared towards large families or those who are house or flat sharing, giving everyone superfast access to the internet at the same time. The package also includes unlimited downloads, a superfast wireless router, internet security and 24 hour support by phone or online.

If you don’t need a 50Mbps broadband package you can always compare broadband packages online, where Virgin Media has some of the best packages on the market.

Here is a general guide for different usage limits; as with everything on the internet this is for reference only and is not an exact guide, as different files are different sizes, but using this quick guide can help you choose the right package:

10GB per month usage limit:

•    General internet browsing per day – 6 hours
•    Emails sending and receiving a day – 370
•    Music downloads per month – 80 songs
•    Video downloads per month – 2 hours

20GB per month usage limit:

•    General internet browsing per day – 12 hours
•    Emails sending and receiving a day – 740
•    Music downloads per month – 160 songs
•    Video downloads per month – 4 hours

40GB per month usage limit:

•    General internet browsing per day – 24 hours
•    Emails sending and receiving a day – 1480
•    Music downloads per month – 320 songs
•    Video downloads per month – 8 hours

Although this is a guide you can quickly see which download limit will suit you best, whether you are a light user who browses the internet for a couple of hours a day, or a heavy user who downloads lots of music and video files of plays online gaming regularly. Now all you have to do is check out a broadband comparison site and find the right deal to suit you.