BSNL Broadband is the best value for money one could get in today’s market. We are in the Electronic age and the PC has become a household item. Having a PC home today without is like owning a vehicle without fuel !
So I too decided to get an ISP connection. Choices: Initially I shortlisted Tata Indicom WiMax. Everything was set up but surprisingly the guy said range is not available atop my terrace. Maybe Wireless’ limitation, I thought. Reliance said the tariff for Unlimited WiMax Broadband @ 300kbps is flat Rs.1200/- + tax. Cmon, I’m not a net hungry businessman I thought.
The only option was left out was BSNL wired Broadband. Upon enquiry, my Uncle who’s working in BSNL Chennai also gave a ’+’ve response. He said BSNL does not charge as high as others with their ’hidden’ charges. Interestingly Tata Indicom had introduced an offer where we need to pay Rs 3500 initially for which they gave a printer free with every connection + Free for 2 or 3 months. Not a bad offer guys except for the fact that the real tariff will be revealed only after the ’free’ period is over. Cmon .... Tata Indicom muft mein printer kyon degaa??
The initial deposit of BSNL was only Rs 500/- for Telefone Instrument + Internet connection. But for 1 month after applying there was no message from BSNL guys. Upon persistently informing my Uncle he called some officers and then somehow I got the connection. From my observation I noted the following things:
Download Speed (MP3 files and Limewire) : 30 kBps (not kbps).
Speed of Browsing :
Main page loading times on Firefox Browser:
For Yahoo main Page to load fully, it takes 3 seconds.
For Rediff : 1 seconds.
On Internet Explorer:
For MSN India : 7 sec.
Mouthshut.com : 5 sec.
Bill amount:
The initial bill amount was Rs 3300/- Upon calling the Cust care they said Rs. 2500 is refundable. For the second month the Bill amount was Rs. 565/- only.Some hiccups: The landline goes dead now and then. Upon informing the local exchange they come and repair it in 1-2 days. Once the net connection didn’t work - said there was some problem in the Internet Exchange itself. Sometimes when we call 1500 the cust serv no. the agents take the call and evidently disconnect the call- sth really frustrating. Hmm ... Govt service!
Bottomline: I feel that upon neglecting these minor hiccups, BSNL ISP’s a good value for money ISP for the budget conscious masses. Go for it if you want genuine service without hidden charges billed !