Experiences with NetZero?

[Eug]

I personally absolutely hate these free internet providers, but it's for a friend on a budget. It seemed rather slow and I wonder how much bandwidth is used by the ads. (Roughly about a 1" bar is lost on her small 800x600 screen by ads.)

Should she bother with the hassles? Or should she just get Sympatico now? (I refuse to recommend AOL however.)

EDIT: She's accessing it in Toronto by the way.

 

[BurnItDwn]

i used to use Netzero a few years ago (from late 1997 to around August of 1998 when i moved on campus and got the TI ...) and then since then i have used it until Last July ... when i got DSL .. and then Cable ....

Its not perfect ... but the Banners do not eat up too much bandwidth

i was able to download binary files at sustained speeds over 5KB/S with the banner adds with a 56k software modem .. and about the same with a 56k hardware modem. I got around 3KB/S back when they were running their service at 28.8 baud.

I still use them for my email today and i have never ever had any problems with them.

Cable is much better ... especially the 4mbit downstream i get ... but ive had the netzero.net email addy for so long i dont want to change...

the only hastles i know of is that they are implimenting some type of 50 or 30 or something hours per month type of plan ... which will make a true internet addict very sad

 

[IamDavid]

You get what ya pay for...

 

[GustySoul]

I think NetZero does a great job for a free ISP. It does help if you can run at higher resolutions so
the ad bar isn't such a pain tough. I access at 45-49kbs most of the time in St. Louis, MO.

Bandwidth wise I'm not sure how much advertising takes up. I usually dowload between 3-4 KBS, but NetZero actually downloads small video ads that play when you sign on - I'm not sure when these downloads occur.

Hope that helps. I don't know what Sympatico is. Oh, and NetZero has a new policy, you can only spend 40
hours per month online, otherwise, if you want to spend more, you need to subscribe to NetZero and pay
$10.00 US per month.

obispo21

 

[Eug]

Hmmm... Didn't realize the 40 hours business. I guess that's reasonable though. Had a problem configuring the Netzero mail, so she's just using www.excite.ca for now.

As for a higher resolution, I thought about that, but she's got an ATI 3D Xpression+ with only 2 MB of memory. I'd normally advise 1024x768 for her monitor, but that would limit her colour depth to 65536 colours. Not ideal. Plus she uses PCI video, so an upgrade to even an 8 MB card gets a bit pricey for the level of card you get. Maybe if I find an el cheapo ATI Rage Pro Turbo PCI in a bargain bin somewhere I'll suggest it to her. Or maybe now that 3dfx is defunct, cheap PCI Voodoo 3 cards will show up.


<< Cable is much better ... especially the 4mbit downstream i get >>

Heheh. I'm on DSL myself, networked to a laptop and my main PC. Sitting and waiting for the logon and the slow downloads on her dialup was sooooooooo painful for me, especially with the annoying ads in the background.

By the way, Sympatico is the main Canadian DSL and dialup ISP. Very reliable and pretty cheap for DSL compared to the US, at about $26/month for 960/128, and 10 hours of dialup (which I use with my laptop).

 

[billandopus]

I'm currently using NetZero in Vancouver while waiting for DSL. It's alright but nothing special. I'm running fairly high resolution on a 19&quot; monitor and the banner is really not a problem at all. You just resize the window(s) to fit under them and it's all good. The clicking of banners is a bit annoying here and there ... but it's free so what can you expect. At the longest you can stay on for about 3 hours or so. Dialup at peak times can be tough. So, i'm usually at late night or in the morning-day before 3pm.

It's worth it IMO with only a 650k download or so.

 

[mindiris]

NetZero is Good and Bad. From a US person:

Good: Free, generally fairly good download speeds, ads don't take up too much bandwith usually (downloads on inactivity supposedly). Great for basic web browsing and limited downloading.

Bad: I've been disconnected for inactivity while *browsing* websites. Never ever, try to play ping sensitive games on it (ad downloads), 40 hour limit now before you have to pay for a advertising banner on your screen for $10 a month.

Juno is another free alternative I've used, and no limit yet AFAIK. Juno checks for your browser being open as a way to see if you are using the internet. Close that, and it will attempt to shut down your connection very quickly. I was however floored by the download speeds when I tried it out (Cable modem network was slow...2 second pings to yahoo are fun!)

Free ISPs in general: they block all POP3 email, except through their own POP3 servers. Juno goes one step further. It tries to intercept and launch it's own Juno email program.

If she goes over 40 hours routinely, I can recommend better ad free pay ISPs that go for $15 a month, no ads, no disconnections for &quot;inactivity&quot;. Pridigy actually is very good in my experience. I can get $5 a month through an offer with AT&amp;T worldnet (I have an AT&amp;T Universal Card), if she stays below 150 hours, $1 each additional hour, though I have no experience with them.

I use DSL now however, so speed for me

 

[The Wildcard]

Yeah i just got an Email from Netzero today informing me of this stupid 40 hour business policy. Oh well, it's free, lol.

Besides that, all i can say is Netzero's program can seriously slow down your computer because it uses Java. That's when some ram helps, lol.

 

[Eug]

<< Besides that, all i can say is Netzero's program can seriously slow down your computer because it uses Java. That's when some ram helps, lol. >>

Hmmm... Maybe that's why it seemed slow. (Pentium 233 MMX with 64 MB.)

 

[Anon19]

rasspy

don't know if it works with Netzero, do a search on it on the web or something.

 

[Engineer]

You can get ATT Worldnet Internet service for $4.95 per month and it includes 150 hours per month, 6 e-mail ID's and up to 60 megs (wow!) of webspace....and no banners.

ATT Worldnet I495 plan

I know it's not free, but not bad for the price either.

Good luck

 

[ganesha]

The AT&amp;T doesn't have a banner, but it does have a navigation bar that must be kept open.

What's this navigation bar that comes on my screen whenever I'm online?

That's our way of helping you simplify your surf. The i495 Offer launches a useful navigation bar whenever you're online that makes it even easier to surf the Web. Enjoy direct links to popular sites, search, e-mail and your homepage. Plus, you'll receive offers tailored to your preferences, making shopping on the Net that much more exciting.

Is the i495 Offer navigation bar always on-screen while I use the Service?

Yes. The navigation bar will always be there to help you quickly locate your favorite places on the Web. It may be a little different than what you're used to, but we think you'll actually find it quite helpful. If you feel the bar is in your way, simply grab it and move it to a &quot;quiet&quot; corner of your screen. But don't close it, or your session will be disconnected and you'll have to log back on.

Can I close or turn off the navigation bar and still use the Service?

No, closing or turning off the navigation bar will terminate your current session. It is through the use of this window that AT&amp;T is able to offer customers this great low price by providing them with relevant advertisements and marketing messages based on their registration information, surveys they complete, and the Web sites they visit.

 

[Stosh]

Netzero is OK, but I would hate to use it a my primary ISP. I don't like the disconnects. Plus it sucks for online gaming. It's nice to have as a backup, if my primary isp is down.

 

[corkyg]

I understand the need for &quot;free&quot; ISPs. I installed NetZero for a friend this past weekend, and it does the job. Juno would not connect. AT&amp;T and others (even AOL) do have $4.95 plans that are excellent . . . however . . . the big barrier is that you must have a credit card, and this lady does not and probably never will. That leaves the freebies as the only viable choice.

 

[Zenmervolt]

I've had good experience with NetZero in the year or so I have been using it to keep away from having to use AOL, which the rest of my family uses. Personally I prefered Freei.net, but NetZero bought them out. I don't like the 40 hour limit, but I don't have to deal with that until spring when I finish Freshman year and have to leave the 10Mb network of the dorms. That said, I'd reccommend that your friend find an inexpensive local ISP, they can usually be found for ~$15 per month and you don't have to put up with the ad banners, which I imagine are quite obtrusive at 800x600 resolution, your friend really needs a new video card.

Zenmervolt