I'm a law student at the LSE, having journeyed countless, er, minutes to England from my home in Col...
I'm a law student at the LSE, having journeyed countless, er, minutes to England from my home in Colombo, Sri Lanka
Member since:12.10.2001
Reviews:7
Members who trust:6
Connecting to the net via a dial-up is not fun - after living in a university Hall of Residence last year, and having a T1 connection in my bedroom, this is very different. When I moved into an apartment, I also had to enter the weird and wacky world of ISPs.....
I'd heard of all kinds of packages on offer, including supposedly 'free' deals where the company itself didn't charge anything, but the phone bills would amount to a fortune. I knew the sensible thing was to get an unlimited 24-7 account (given my level of internet usage) and get a flat fee, 0-800 number deal. So I decided to take AOL's one-month free trial while I shopped around. I didn't actually intend to stay with them.
The thing that's annoying about it is that you need to install AOL's connection/browser software. You can't use Windows' standard dial-up connection setup, which would have been the leaner, faster option. It was also not too fast initially, but a quick call to the Helpdesk sorted that out, with some config changes. The Helpdesk is one of the best aspects of the AOL service - it's free, reasonably fast, and the staff are friendly and competent.
The other thing that's nice is the little news snippets that you get when you log on. The current affairs, the 'seasonal' news (like the Halloween special on Britain's top 10 haunted houses), and the free competitions are all nice touches (although I haven't won anything yet!)
The connection is reasonably fast and stable, and it's only failed about three times in over two months of use - that too, only momentarily. I almost never use the browser, the email client or the messenger service, because I like what I'm used to. I only use it for AOL exclusive material (which is broad-ranging and generally quite good).
They were also really nice - after the first free month, when I wasn't quite satisfied with the speed, and wanted to disconnect, they gave me another month free, some faster dial-up numbers, and asked me to try a little more. By the time the second month lapsed, I was happier with the speed, I was enjoying the content, and I'd heard of other ISPs that had closed down, or charged premium rates for Helpdesk calls. I know that at £14.99 they're a little more expensive than most ISPs, but I think it's worth it for the stability, the Helpdesk quality, and the re-assurance that they're not going to close down tomorrow.
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great review, Im currently with aol, and its great :-)
Hannah xxx
SouthernComfort 06.03.2003 01:37
Interesting overview on the AOL service and the helpdesk! - I am glad you are happy with the service, I am myself an AOL addict of Old (2.5). Stay with us as things are getting better all the time. AOL 8.0 will be out this summer and you are going to love it, so many new features. Nice Op!
Advantages: The service is too easy to get asnd too hard to get rid of. Disadvantages: Total and deliberate refusal to cancel contracts or rely to complaints.
wamaker 29.08.2005 (29.08.2005)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: somewhat helpful
Review of AOL
Nov 25th, 2001
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