ISP Review: EarthLink High Speed DSL

EarthLink has been a major force in Internet access for ages. But with competition from rivals both old and new, the giant has expanded to offer Internet service in a bunch of categories -- different broadband types and dialup plans.

EarthLink's Digital Subscriber Line is one of its most popular broadband products, and it shows. The ISP has two versions of its DSL Internet Access. EarthLink Basic DSL offers speeds of 384 Kbps downstream, and 128 Kbps upstream, while EarthLink High Speed DSL ups the downstream speed to a staggering 3Mbps -- faster than most cable Internet service providers!

Both services offer eight email accounts, and 10 megs of storage space on each. Both also provide you with 20 hours of dialup access per month -- which is helpful if you're a laptop "road warrior" and need to log on from when you are away from your home PC.

EarthLink DSL offers a free pop-up blocker that terminates most pop-up ads before you even see them. It also offers anti-spam tools to reduce junk mail.

DSL Internet access is hot, and EarthLink has two great packages to pick from. Both are a value -- basic service provides speeds well faster than dialup at a relatively cheap price (that's great for penny pinchers like myself!) But if you want to get some truly frightening Internet speeds, EarthLink High Speed DSL is for you.

EarthLink as an ISP doesn't throw in a lot of special features like exclusive content, but it does give you options -- and on a budget, that's always nice. Still, the Internet service is more pricey than dialup, so you need to make sure that the extra speeds justify the extra cost. However, once you experience "always-on" Internet service connectivity and downloading at super speeds, you may not want to go back!

Great-ISP-Deals.com gives EarthLink Basic DSL... three stars! A great value!!

• $39.95 per month for Basic
  
• $49.95 per month for High Speed
  (discounts for first six months for each)
  
  Plus $50 set-up fee