Aug 21, 2004 02:22 AM
5062 Views
(Updated Aug 21, 2004 02:22 AM)
Let me remind you first of all that nowadays most cable operators have abandoned their unlimited internet schemes and they place some kind of data volume limit on your connection which varies from 100MB to 1GB. The few who do have an unlimited scheme somehow forget to mention that the speeds in the unlimited scheme is limited to 32kbps. Even then they charge more than Rs 1000.
In this context MTNL came out with a jewel of a scheme. Just Rs 700 per month and no installation costs, just 2000 Rs refundable deposit. This means that you can try the scheme for a month and if you dont like the results you can cancel the connection then and there and the only money lost will be the 700 rs monthly charge.
When you apply for the scheme they put in a seperate line so you dont have to worry about keeping your home phone busy. You can connect to the internet by dialing the 24880000 number. There are no other costs. You won't get billed for the telephone call or for ISP charges. You can even get incoming calls on the new line but no outgoing.
I live about 1 Km from my telephone exchange. The quality of service I get is excellent. I always get connected at the first try and I get about 5KBps transfer rate which is more than what a 32 kbps cable connection would give. But be warned that the quality of service is heavily dependent on the telephone connection and will differ from place to place. The service I get is much better than what I had hoped for but at other places it might suffer. If you want a rough idea what transfer rates you will get just connect to the MTNL no 2880000 (username:your phone no , password:mtnl) from your existing line.
Ever since I got this connection I haven't had the need to call to call their service center so I can't comment on that. I'd like to mention that I got my new line activated within 9 days of applying .
All in all I'll say that if you are heavy internet user than this is the best scheme out there solely because it gives you unlimited internet at decent speeds at just 700Rs per month which no other ISP can match nowadays. So untill other ISPs realize that they just have to reduce their prices for the unlimited scheme this is the scheme to go for.
