Broadband Guide

Broadband for students

Tuesday 10 January, 2012

By Editorial - news@consumerchoices.co.uk

Broadband is a key student essential, helping you study, stay in touch with friends and family and get the best deals online, so it’s vital that you get a broadband package to suit your needs - and your budget.

Student broadband deals

Students have specific needs when it comes to broadband packages. What works in a family situation may not be right for a student who has just left home for university. There are a number of things to take into account when you shop around for an internet connection, including how many people will be sharing the same connection, how much time you'll spend online, what you'll be using your connection for - and crucially - how long you'll be at your student house.

Video: How to find the best student broadband deal

One-month contracts

You don’t want to be tied to a broadband contract for 12 months or 18 months if you'll only be at your student house during term time, for example. If you're looking for a provider offering shorter, rolling contracts, then Plusnet broadband (www.Plus.net) O2 broadband (www.O2.co.uk) are both great options.

Each provider offers a one-month contract option, so you can simply cancel in time for your lease to expire - and you won’t have to pay for any internet you're not using.

• Plusnet broadband starts from £6.49 a month for speeds of up to 20Mb and a 10GB download allowance or £11.49 for 60GB - though you also get free overnight downloads - perfect for late-night study sessions. You will have to pay a £25 activation fee
• O2 also offers rolling one month contracts on its three broadband packages; The Basics, The All Rounder and The Works. Each comes with speeds of up to 20Mb plus either a 20GB set data allowance or truly unlimited downloads, subject to a traffic management policy. Again though, you'll have to pay a £30.63 connection charge to enjoy the freedom of a 30-day contract, as well as an extra £25.53 if you're not an existing O2 customer

Nine-month contracts

As well as the rolling one-month contracts available from Plusnet and O2, cable giant Virgin Media (www.Virginmedia.com) has also launched a selection of nine-month student broadband packages - so you don’t have to pay for the summer. However you do have to pay an installation fee so you should factor that in to your calculations.

It is offering standalone broadband - so unlike Plusnet and O2, you don’t even need to pay line rental - at three different speeds; up to 10Mb, 30Mb and 50Mb broadband.

While Virgin Media isn’t the cheapest broadband provider on the market, if you live in a shared household - where you can also share your bills, it is perfect if you're looking for a connection that can handle a lot of student activity.

Research by telecoms regulator Ofcom in May 2011 showed that Virgin Media’s slowest 10Mb package was delivering between 9Mb and 9.5Mb on average - far outperforming its competitors.

Its 30Mb package, which is also available on a nine-month student contract, managed to deliver 101% of its advertised speed with an average 31Mb.

However, if you and your mates are planning on staying at your digs for a full 12 months, signing up to a longer contract could offer big savings on your broadband, allowing you to access the cheapest broadband packages on the market, many of which come with 12-month contracts attached.

Student broadband with digital TV

If you're a more affluent student and want a TV service that lets you watch more than just Neighbours, then Virgin Media is again a good option.

Its student packages don’t just offer speedy broadband; you can also sign-up to home phone calls and digital TV.

Add either the M+ package to your bundle for 75 channels including Sky 1, Sky Living and Discovery as well as six high-definition (HD) channels.

If you want even more telly options, you can upgrade to the XL TV package.

Although these deals are pretty expensive, if there are four of you sharing a house, a Virgin Media broadband, home phone and digital TV bundle will set you back from less than £10 a month each - and both options come with the faster 30Mb service.

Sky (www.Sky.com) is the only major alternative if you're looking for a triple-play bundle, but its contracts do run for 12 months and you'll need to have a satellite dish installed - which isn’t always possible at student properties.

Mobile discounts

Before you pick your broadband provider you should find out if your mobile operator offers a home internet service as you could land yourself a discount.

For example, as an existing O2 or Orange (www.Orange.co.uk) customer, you can get a monthly £5 discount on your broadband.

Wireless broadband

If you want to share your connection - and bills - with your housemates, then a fixed line broadband connection is the best solution. Many providers will give you a free wireless broadband router when you sign a contract, though even if you don’t want to do this you can always buy one from a computer hardware shop or online for around £30.

If you are sharing your connection with other people, you need to be aware that your download speed will be affected when more people that are online at the same time - especially at peak times such as weekday evenings. You should also keep an eye on your download allowance to make sure that you don’t exceed your limit or break your fair usage policy.

Although there are a number of devices on the market that let you share your mobile broadband connection - such as mobile Wi-Fi dongles - it’s not a great idea to do this regularly. Mobile broadband download allowances are far lower than fixed line connections - and 3GB or even 5GB a month won’t go far between three or four people.

Mobile broadband

Mobile broadband can be a great add-on to a home broadband package, or even a standalone solution, allowing you to log on at home, in the library or from the pub. It also offers a great choice of package types, from pay-as-you-go-to one-month contracts or longer length plans.

Pay-as-you-go mobile broadband packages are great for students because you can’t exceed your download allowance and run up high bills - and you can simply stop using your dongle when you go home during the holidays. However, if your pay-as-you-go credit runs out, you won’t be able to get online until you top-up again - which is where pay monthly plans can offer better value.

Even if you don’t want to make a long commitment, you can get the same value from a one-month contract as you would from an 18 or 24-month tariff, with providers like Three mobile broadband (www.Three.co.uk) offering 5GB a month for £15.99.

Compare broadband packages by monthly and yearly cost, get more information on providers and packages, and switch.