Need broadband? Ready to switch? Get fair, unbiased advice in a language you understand so you make the right choice.
Wireless hotspots
If you’ve got a wireless-enabled laptop - or even PDA or mobile phone - you don’t have to stay at home to use the internet. There are thousands of free, and paid-for, wireless hotspots dotted around the UK in cafés, airports and hotels that let you use their wifi connection to get online.
How to find a hotspot
There are loads of hotspots around; you just have to find them. Use the TotalHotspot website to search out public wireless networks in your area. For example, central London has loads of them, but if you live in a more remote area you might have to go the lobby of a hotel or local pub to get access.
Free or paid for?
There are free hotspots available, but these can be few and far between, while those that you have to pay for can cost as much as £5 an hour - far more than using an internet café. However, the UK’s biggest provider of free wifi is now McDonalds’s, launching free wifi in almost 1,700 restaurants in October last year.
Wireless packages
Both T-Mobile (www.T-Mobile.co.uk) and Freedon4wifi (www.Freedom4wifi) offer packages that allow inclusive hotspot use. While T-Mobile’s £20 a month plan only allows access to T-Mobile hotspots, Freedom4wifi’s range of pay-as-you-go, pre-pay and subscription plans offer access to more than 40,000 hotspots across the world.
A word of warning
A word of warning must be given about using public access internet such as hotspots. Try to avoid putting in credit card details or using internet banking when connected to one of these networks, as there is a higher hacker risk. However, don’t let this put you off - millions of people regularly use wifi hotspots, which are an easy, convenient and sometimes free, alternative to mobile broadband and internet cafés.
contact us 
