Looking for a new internet service?  There are many internet companies to choose from now, more then a few years ago.  It can be a hard decision to make, some of the major companies that offer internet services are FiOS, Cable, Satellite and then the old way of dial-up.

FiOS Internet which is offered by Verizon is “High-Speed Fiber-Optic Broadband Internet”.  Businesses have used fiber-optic systems for telecommunications for many years before Verizon found a way to bring it into your home.  According to http://www22.verizon.com/content/ConsumerFiOS/ FiOS uses a hair-thin strand of fiber glass and laser generated lights to transmit data at high speed to your home.  FiOS offers speeds up to 50 Mbps to help upload/download pictures and movies fast. Their plans start at $42.99 a month with FREE installation.  OK, here is the catch; to receive FREE installation it is for your primary computer ONLY and you must sign a one-year agreement.  They do offer a month-to-month plan but the installation for that plan is NOT FREE there is a fee of $79.99.  You can, also, set up additional computers in your home during the initial installation for a fee of $89.99 for EACH additional computer. 

Does my computer meet the requirements for Verizon FiOS Internet Service; I have Windows Vista on my computer.  I would need a minimum system speed of 800 MHz for a 10 Mbps/2 Mbps or 20 Mbps/5 Mbps FiOS Speed package.  My RAM memory would need to be 512 MB, I would have to have an external media drive – DVD-ROM, 100 MB of free disk space, a Network Interface Card (NICO of 10/100 NIC and for wireless adapters USB or PCMCIA 802.11b/g.  But the recommended requirements are speed of 1 GHz, RAM memory of 1 GB, DVD-ROM for an external media drive, 1.5 GB of free disk space, 10/100 NIC and wireless adapters USB or PCMICA 802.11b/g.  I must first check to see if the service is available in my area.

If I choose to go with a satellite, there is HughesNet.  At HughesNet’s website http://www.satellitestarinternet.com/index.html?q=satellite+internet&gclid=CM3B0sKK-5UCFQwuHgoddCSHFA it says no more waiting, and no more phone lines.  HughesNet boosts speed and frees phone lines from Satellite Star.  Plus you can get HughesNet anywhere in the United States.  HughesNet is a satellite modem which will connect directly to my home computer, with a satellite dish outside my house.  The only requirement for HughesNet is purchasing the satellite modem (dish). 

The cost of HughesNet depends on which package I purchase.  They offer a lease or purchase option.  For the lease option their are 5 speeds Fast, Faster, Fastest, Turbo, and Extreme and the costs start at $69.98 this is includes a $9.99 monthly leasing fee; the fee for the extreme is $199.98 this price also includes the $9.99 leasing fee.  If I decided to purchase the equipment upfront the monthly costs would be less and there are 5 monthly plans for these packages as well, you have Home, Pro, ProPlus, Elite, and ElitePlus; to purchase the equipment and installation the costs is $299.98 after a $100.00 mail-in rebate PLUS a $50.00 Visa gift card when purchasing any of the 5 packages; the monthly charges start at $59.99 for the Home and $189.99 for the Elite.

Comparing the plans: with FiOS all plans include 24/7 live technical support, I would get 9 e-mail accounts, 10 MB for my own Web page, access to online entertainment, exclusive member discounts, choice of online services and I can add optional premium services.  All of HughesNet plans come with 24/7 live technical support, personalized start page, e-mail accounts (it does not say how many), e-mail defense (spam and virus filtering), and 24-month limited equipment warranty.

Which would I choose I do not know.  I would probably choose FiOS; at least if anything goes wrong Verizon should fix it, unless it is in my home.  With HughesNet the equipment only has a LIMITED 24-month warranty and we all know that if something goes wrong it is never what is covered under that LIMITED warranty and what is covered always breaks on the 25th month.

Right now I am using Verizon Wireless Internet service, this is basically a faster dial-up service which I like sometimes and sometimes I am ready to throw it out the window.  I wanted to get Comcast or FiOS at my home, which is in Lake Caroline in Caroline County, neither service offered in my area of Caroline.  I needed a wireless service that I could use anywhere, I am not always home, so I wanted a service that was not tied to a phone line or cable.  The only problem I find is that in the middle doing something online, like my class work, I will get disconnected.  This can be frustrating as it will take me longer to get the work done.  The thing I did like is the wireless USB card that can go anywhere.  The cost was about $60.00 with a 2-year contract and monthly charge which is about $60.00.  So I think I will stick with my Verizon wireless a little longer.