Eclipse Internet Home Lite

• Reliable up to 24Mb Eclipse Internet
• Excellent customer service
• Brilliant performance at busy times
• Optimise your online activities with useful control panel tool
• Free activation (when switching)

Eclipse Internet broadband review: Home Lite

IF you're after one of the fastest, best value broadband deals in the UK, you've stumbled across it.

For less than other's are paying for a fairly sluggish broadband, Eclipse Internet Lite offers speeds approaching supersonic: 24Mb to be precise.

Downsides

There are downsides to this package though.

While you will enjoy free setup with this Eclipse Internet Home Lite package, you will unfortunately have to supply your own ADSL2+ modem or router (note that this is different from a standard router or modem).

Also, if you happen not to live in Eclipse Internet's unbundled area, you'll only be able to receive the fastest speed for your line, which if you're not in an unbundled area will be no more than 8Mb - you can check the speed of your line and the fastest broadband deals available to you here.

Incidentally, this is also no longer the fastest broadband around (hello, Virgin Media's 50 Mb service) or the cheapest for the speed you're getting (that's now TalkTalk Essentials).

Only 2GB monthly usage allowance

The real downside to the Eclipse Internet Home Lite package, however, is that you only get a 2GB monthly usage allowance.

One does have to question why anyone would opt for such a low allowance when they have one of the fastest broadband connections in the country?

That said, for light users who want their broadband fast this is a great package.

After all, 2GB will still allow you to use the web extensively as well as send emails. You will probably not be able to watch too many catch up shows on iPlayer and not download any full length movies but that's still not too unreasonable for this price.

Control the performance of your connection

A major upside is Eclipse Internet's 'Traffic Controller' tool which allows you to shape your connection according to your web use priorities. So if you mostly watch streaming video for example, you can prioritise your connection for that very task, ensuring a much smoother operation.

12 month contract

This is the only one of the Eclipse Internet's broadband packages which doesn't give you an option of a 1 month contract, so you have no choice but to tie yourself in for 12 months, but this is far from uncommon with almost any broadband provider.

If you do suffer from itchy feet however, it's Eclipse Internet Home Select and Eclipse Internet Home Pro that allow 1 month rolling contracts.

Again on the positive side, Eclipse Internet has been famous for its customer service over the years (before they were thrust into the spotlight with their surprise 24Mbps speeds) and Eclipse Internet was regularly regarded one of the best broadband providers in the country.

Is Eclipse Internet Home Lite the right package for me?

Yes, if you are an infrequent user who still wants the very fastest broadband speeds currently available and who doesn't want to pay too much each month.

If however you will be using the speed of your broadband connection to its best, you'll need to upgrade to other the Eclipse Internet Home Select or Eclipse Internet Home Pro which both offer more reasonable usage allowances along with other, additional benefits.

If you are unsure, you can of course compare all Eclipse Internet broadband packages side by side here, or you can work out your bandwidth requirements by reading our guide on "How much broadband usage do I really need?".

A little more detail...

Broadband		Special Note...
Package:	Home Lite	-
Connection:	ADSL2+	Telephone line
Max Speed:	Up to 24Mb	Up to 1Mb upload speeds
Usage Limit:	2GB
Totally Unlimited:	No
Hardware:	None provided	-
Internet Security:	None	Eclipse email service has anti-virus and anti-spam protection.
Online Gaming:	The usage limit is low for online gaming.	The usage limit is low for online gaming, but it can be used.