Gis.net: an affordable ISP in the Northeast
Written: Apr 10 '01 (Updated Apr 10 '01)
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Pros: cheap; reliable in PA
Cons: customer service lacking
The Bottom Line: Good deal for the money if you don't have many needs from an ISP other than a reliable dial-up number. Users who require contact with customer support should go elsewhere.
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| whitty's Full Review: GIS.net |
I have been a customer of Galaxy Internet Services for five years. I first signed up with them in 1996, when I had graduated college and moved to Boston. I was in search of a cheap, local, reliable ISP for a home dial-up.
I picked up a free local technical newspaper that listed Gis.net amongst several other ISPs.
Gis.net was $9.95 per month at the time, a small Boston-based company that I found to be more affordable than the usual $19.95 for most others.
Cost
Currently, at the time of this epinion, monthly dial-up service cost $11.95 - still cheaper than most Internet Service Providers.
Since I started using Gis.net, I have moved to the Philadelphia area. Lucky for me, Gis.net also expanded the areas they provide service, and they now offer dial-up services in Pennsylvania, Virginia, Maryland, Washington D.C., Georgia, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, and New York.
Reliability
A friend who uses Gis.net in the Boston area says that he encounters busy signals on occasion. I never have a problem in Philadelphia.
I haven't once dialed into a busy signal - in fact I don't think I have ever dialed anything beyond my first choice dial-up number.
And dial-up connections are pretty standard - I usually connect right at 44 bps.
Also, their mail servers do go down at times. It is definitely a nuisance when it happens, but it typically doesn't last more than a few hours, and I have found that it never happens more than once or twice in a year.
Other services
Gis.net also offers residential and business DSL service. The cost is $45.95 a month for a residence. According to their website, residential DSL is only offered in Massachusetts at this time.
They also offer Web hosting for the consumer. There are a variety of packages available based on the needs of the individual: $12.95 a month for "Economy Hosting" buys 10 MB of space, 1 mailbox and 1 GB of transfer; $19.95 a month for "Standard Hosting" buys 25 MB of space, 5 mailboxes and 3 GB of transfer.; $29.95 a month for "Plus Hosting" buys 100 MB of space, 10 mailboxes and 6 MB of transfer - the packages go up from there.
Tech support
In my opinion, I have found tech support lacking. I have had to wait on the phone for extended periods of time, and I have often found that I know more than the person on the phone. The online text support is the way I fix most problems I encounter (which are few and far between anyway.)
I would not recommend using Galaxy Internet Services to the type of person who is in need of frequent customer support. For savvier web users who don't mind frustrating customer support, I think the cost of the ISP is worth the hassles of the customer support waits.
Further information is available on their website at www.gis.net.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 11.95/mo
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Epinions.com ID:
whitty
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 - Top 500 |
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Location: Philadelphia, PA
Reviews written: 142
Trusted by: 126 members
About Me:
is d'eirinn me
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