Internet usage by gigabyte?

1. 79

   brimancandyposted 11 years ago

   I am trying to find a decent high speed internet service in my area. It seems that the only ones that offer service where I am located, sell internet by the gigabyte, and not by monthly use. I'm just curious about how a person would know how many gigabytes of internet they are using in a month.
   
   With these plans you don't get much usage. 30 Gigabytes is $30.00 a month, and you have to get a 2 year contract on top of that. I think the highest was 100 at $79.00 a month. It seems to me if you spent a lot of time on the internet, or spent any time watching youtube, you would go through that pretty quick.
   I have a gigabyte card for my camera, and it fills up pretty quick.
   
   Does anyone know how that works? I would like to have a monthly plan with unlimited use, but there are no companies in my area that offer that. It seems to me, it's a huge rip off, and these companies that sell by the gig, are probably the same ones that sell regular service. But, are too cheap to move their services to rural areas. 
   
   Any help would be appreciated I'm sick of dial up!

   replyreport
   1. 87

      IzzyMposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      30 Gigabytes is plenty unless you are downloading full length movies every other day!
      
      My last contract only gave me 5 Gigs a month at full speed, then they cut my speed down to dial-up if I went over that. I still managed to go through 10 or 15 a month.
      
      The 'unlimited' internet I have now is not really unlimited at all. The small print carries a 'fair use' policy limiting users to 50 Gigs a month, but that is more than enough for the two internet users in this house.
      
      Check what your new contract sets out to do if you go over your limit.
      
      Some providers cut your speed, others charge you extortionate rates.
      
      If it is the latter, I strongly suggest you get a program like Netmeter to record your bandwidth (up and down), so that you always know at a glance what you have used in the month, and what you have left.
      
      You can get Netmeter free from Hoo Technologies on trial. http://www.hootech.com/NetMeter/
      
      It only costs $25 to buy, but can save you much more than that.
      
      Oh and don't compare internet usage with your camera. Digital photo files are massive! That is why they have to be cut down for use on the web.

      replyreport
      1. 79

         brimancandyposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         What about watching movies online or youtube videos? It seems like that would eat up a lot of gigs. Thanks for the info though. I'll have to explore it a little more. I just don't want to get ripped off, If I can get unlimited for around the same price. Comcast never charged us any extra fees, and we watched movies almost every day, with unlimited use.

         replyreport
         1. 87

            IzzyMposted 11 years agoin reply to this

            Watching movies online will eat up your allowance. Youtube videos less so, as they are much smaller files.
            
            Think about it, a full length movie is about 800mb, higher if it is in HD, so you could still watch about 30 movies (one a day) and still have a  little left over for surfing. That 800mb is to download them, I assume watching them online will use roughly the same.
            
            Honestly, 30Gigs for only $30 a month, is good.
            
            I paid about $60 a month for 5!

            replyreport
   2. 60

      paradigmsearchposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      .
      It is the "unanimous" opinion of the internet that Hughes Satellite sucks.
      
      But, if you're desperate, and it's an at will contract, and there's no ridiculous fees, and everything else seems OK; maybe check them out.

      replyreport
      1. 79

         brimancandyposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         I have talked to people who have Hughes, and they say it's not good at all. A few friends of mine have something called a Verizon "Air Card" but, I am getting conflicting reports of what that is all about. But, the people who have the air card are former Hughes customers.

         replyreport
         1. 60

            paradigmsearchposted 11 years agoin reply to this

            I've never heard of their Air Card, but I have a good opinion of Verizon!

            replyreport
2. 56

   A Driveby Quipperposted 11 years ago

   McDonald's

   replyreport
   1. 79

      brimancandyposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      The nearest McDonalds to us is 25 miles away, and they do not have internet access. The only places that do are the public libraries, and there are only 3 in my area. One 11 miles away in white cloud, the other two are in Big Rapids, which is 25 miles away. May be more locations in Big Rapids, but that's a long drive just to use the internet.

      replyreport
      1. 87

         IzzyMposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         Have you thought about getting a long range wifi adapter, to bring those distant free hotspots to your door, instead of you having to go there?
         
         http://www.amazon.com/Alfa-AWUS036H-Upg … B000QYGNKQ
         
         The range is normally 2 or 3 miles, but some people have reported a range of 20 - 30 miles.

         replyreport
         1. 79

            brimancandyposted 11 years agoin reply to this

            Don't think there would be anything close enough to me for that. But It sounds interesting. I'll check that out too! Thanks!
            
            But, don't you have to have a special code to access the free spots?

            replyreport
            1. 87

               IzzyMposted 11 years agoin reply to this

               Yes but you usually only need to visit them once to get your computer logged on. Then it will automatically reconnect if within range.
               
               Of course you do need a laptop computer, not a desktop.

               replyreport
         2. 79

            brimancandyposted 11 years agoin reply to this

            Do you need a wireless modem to use this product? Or does it have a built in modem? Checked the link, and it doesn't mention it. My computer doesn't have an internal modem. I should mention that my computer is a desktop.

            replyreport
            1. 87

               IzzyMposted 11 years agoin reply to this

               No you don't need a modem, it tunes into your wireless card.
               
               I am using one right now in order to pick up the wireless router which is at the far side of the house through thick walls.
               
               I can see several wireless connections coming from other houses, some more than a mile away. They are all encrypted.
               
               I can also see the one from my local library, but I do not know the password. I could go and ask, but don't need to as I have internet here already.

               replyreport
      2. 56

         A Driveby Quipperposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         Smoke signals? Carrier pigeon?

         replyreport
3. 55

   andromidaposted 11 years ago

   You can try out bandwidth meter to keep track of your bandwidth usage.

   replyreport