Best broadband bundle that’ll save you a bundle

By Helen Storey Staff Writer Monday, 25 August 2008

Best Broadband Bundle? What you'll pay for the best broadband bundles Sky See, Speak & Surf 1 £17 p/m package cost £10.50 p/m line rental £30 set-up fee £27.50 p/m in total Sign Up Now TalkTalk Free Broadband with Global Evenings & Weekends £3.25 p/m for the first 3 months, £6.49 thereafter £ 10.50 line rental £ 29.99 set-up fee £16.99 p/m total Digital TV not included Sign Up Now Tiscali Broadband, Talk and TV 1 £15.99 p/m for the first 3 months, £19.99 thereafter Line rental included £30 set-up fee £19.99 p/m total Sign Up Now Virgin Media 3 for £30: £30 p/m Line rental included £30 set-up fee £30 p/m total Sign Up Now Related Broadbands News See our other recent related news stories: Best broadband and phone deal Looking for the best broadband and phone deal? Julia Kukiewicz takes a look at the contenders and reminds you what you should look out for when taking a broadband and phone bundle deal. The Student's Guide to Broadband Best student broadband? Anna Konig has the answer in this comprehensive look at the best student broadband deals.

WITH bundles of bundles on the loose, and a recent report that broadband bundles can save you a, er, bundle, how do you know which one is best for you?

As that recent report suggests, bundling up on your broadband, phone and TV can save you a pretty penny, but like anything, each bundle will offer something different according to your needs, and it can be a thankless task trying to search out your perfect package.

Whether you’re desperate for the Dingles, or have friends in faraway places, we’ve hunted down the best broadband bundle for you.

Best broadband bundle for: The Telly Addict

No, not the awful 90’s gameshow with Noel Edmonds.

If you can tear your square eyes away from the goggle-box long enough to read this, then Sky’s See, Speak and Surf package, which starts from £17, is probably for you.

Not only do you get free UK landline calls on the evening and weekends, which will allow you to call your mates and compare notes on sleeping Big Brother housemates in the wee hours of the morning, but you get a reasonable 2Mb broadband connection.

Admittedly this isn’t the fastest broadband connection in the world, but should be more than ample if you’re not a heavy internet user.

It should be noted that the £17 for this bundle does not include line rental, which you will need to pay BT (currently £10.50 a month if you pay by Direct Debit).

The download limit on this is 2GB per month, which should allow you to do all your regular e-mail checking, a few iPlayer downloads and some general surfing, but let’s get to the exciting bit.

With the bundle, you get a choice of 2 Sky TV mixes: Variety, News & Events, Knowledge, Music, Kids and Lifestyle & Culture. If this just isn’t enough, you can add a mix for a meagre pound each. You can also add Movie and Sport packages for an extra fee.

If you want full control over your TV, you can add Sky+ to your package at the moment for £99 with free for you, which gives you an excuse never to cancel on a Friday night out again.

Read a full review of Sky See, Speak & Surf
Sign up now for Sky See, Speak & Surf (£17 per month)

Best broadband bundle for: The Wanderer

Your fridge is full of dodgy magnets from various places and your passport contains more stamps than your local Post Office ever did before it was shut down.

At some point the traveller needs to settle in one place, and if you’ve got worldwide connections, then the TalkTalk Free Broadband with Talk Global Evening & Weekends will suit you down to your home ground.

You’ll need to pay £10.50 for line rental (to TalkTalk), then £6.49 on top of that each month (though the first 3 months is only £3.50!), and you get your ‘free’ 8Mb broadband with a 40GB download limit, and better than that, free international calls on evenings and weekends to 36 destinations worldwide.

Yes, free international calls. This includes most European countries, Australia & New Zealand, China, Japan, and even mobile calls to the USA and Canada. Perfect for keeping in touch with family and friends.

You can also upgrade to £10.49 per month and get free anytime calls to UK landlines and international destinations. Bargain!

You will need to take an 18 month contract, so if you think you’re going to get itchy feet within that time, it’s probably not the best idea.

Read a full review of TalkTalk Free Broadband with Talk Global Evening & Weekends
Sign up now for TalkTalk (£3.50 per month)

Best broadband bundle for: The Student

All that partying and sporadic studying is bound to take its toll on your wallet (have you seen the price of textbooks these days?!)

If you’re looking for a cheap broadband, TV and phone bundle, then Tiscali Broadband, Talk & TV 1 is probably a good option.

If you’re not in a major hurry to be connected (Tiscali are known for being a bit tardy in this respect), then this package will probably suit you.

It offers a speedy 8Mb broadband service for the download of lecture notes, or the next episode of Lost. Alternatively you could just watch the next episode of Lost on Tiscali TV.

Although it sounds like a cheesy infomercial channel, Tiscali TV offers a mix of the best digital channels (including the hallowed Sky One), with a massive selection of on-demand movies and programmes, as well as a free 7-day catch up from the week’s pick of TV.

You can add different packages of channels to your package for £5.99 a pop, and there’s no dish or aerial required – you get your TV down your phoneline (for which line-rental is included in the price)

The price starts from £15.99 for the first 3 months, then £19.99 thereafter.

With this you also get a free wireless router, as well as free evening and weekend calls to UK landlines and 10 international destinations including the USA and Oz, so whether your mum is at home, or sunning herself in Spain, you can always call her to ask for washing machine advice. (Oh, and get your textbooks from the library. They’re free that way!)

Read a full review of Tiscali Broadband, Talk & TV Option 1
Sign up now for Tiscali Broadband, Talk & TV Option 1 (£15.99 per month)

Best broadband bundle for: The Family

If your life consists of organised chaos where everybody can’t be pleased by one thing, then maybe Virgin Media can change that.

They can’t send Supernanny as she’s too busy learning how to say ‘unacceptable’ correctly, but they can offer a pretty fine bundle.

Virgin Media’s 3 for £30 deal will get you exactly that – 3 services for £30. It’s simple!

Dad will be happy with the Large TV package, which includes Eurosport and the Discovery Channel. It also features the flavour-of-the-month iPlayer, which lets you catch up on BBC programmes you may have missed over the last few weeks or so.

A huge database of on-demand programmes and films are also available which will keep him happy, though it might cause some remote control-related arguments.

Mum will love the unlimited free weekend calls to landlines with the bundled Medium home phone package. Remember, with Virgin Media no line rental is required, so no need to factor in that extra £10.50 - £11.75 per month).

The kids will be kept entertained by the Medium broadband package – offering a 2Mb service, there are no download limits, so you can surf all you like without worrying about paying more for exceeding a limit. You also get a free modem to help you get started.

Whilst they can’t promise domestic harmony, we think Virgin Media have the perfect family broadband bundle package wrapped up.

Read a full review of Virgin Media 3 for £30
Sign up now for Virgin Media 3 for £30 (£30 per month)

Whatever your situation, there’s the ideal bundle for you, which could save you bundles!

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