What's Happening in Broadband News?

There's been a lot of broadband news lately about the UK's broadband infrastructure. Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt has made a lot of promises about what we are to expect in the near future from our broadband, but it seems that those living in rural areas aren't getting the best broadband available to them. If you live in a rural area and need some help choosing a broadband provider then hopefully this will be of use. BT might be a good option for you as they have recently announced that they will be extending their next-generation ADSL broadband service to a further 2.5 million homes. This includes about 900,000 home in rural areas, with promises that many will see download speeds double. Doing a postcode check is always a good idea too, as this will tell you what kind of speeds you can expect to be getting in your area. Read reviews and ask around in order to get the best speed available to you. Satellite broadband options are sometimes the only choice in areas where ADSL, cable, or mobile broadband availability is poor or non-existent. Some rural communities who live in areas with poor connections decide to join together to set up their own networks. Although costs can be high, some providers such as Eutelsat Communications and Tariam Satellite Broadband are slowly bringing their costs down to more competitive prices. You might find that mobile broadband could work better for you in a rural area. If you get good mobile phone coverage from your provider then a dongle might be better for your home. Mobile broadband is now available to more than 97% of the population and is very easy to use. There are pay as you go tariffs available on O2 and T-Mobile which is handy if you don't use the web very often, and you don't even need a landline to connect. This is a great option for if you've just moved into a house or are always on the go. If mobile phone coverage is an issue in your area too, as is likely if you have trouble with internet access, then you might want to consider T-Mobile or Orange as your network provider. The network service providers use something called 'piggybacking' to try to ensure you get a good signal. This means that if you are on Orange then you get to use the T-Mobile network as well, and vice-versa for T-Mobile. This will hopefully make sending a simple text message a little less painful for you. Although it might seem tricky, there are ways to make sure you get an internet connection. Fast broadband is supposed to available for all by 2015, but until then make sure you're aware of these other options.