January 6, 2012

Save Money On Your Bell Internet Service

If you use Bell Internet service then chances are you’re getting ripped off. Bell has a nasty habit of changing their Internet packages and never telling their customers about the great savings.

In Ontario, Bell is trying to be competitive with Rogers and other ISPs. If you switch and become a Bell customer you can get some great deals on Internet service. I recently checked the new prices for some of the packages and found that they had dropped but I was still paying the old price! Bell will never tell you that you can save money by reviewing your Internet service. Why would they? Somebody has to pay for the subsidized service of their new customers.

Fibe 12

I’m using Bell’s Fibe 12 service and pay $54.95 a month. I also have to rent a Bell modem for $4.95. So for $59.90 a month I get:

  • Download speeds of up to 12 Mbps
  • Upload speeds of up to 1 Mbps
  • 50 GB of bandwidth

When I checked the Bell website I discovered that the Fibe 12 package now costs $46.95 month and you don’t have to rent a Bell modem. According to the Bell representative that I spoke to, back in August 2011 they lowered the price and removed the mandatory modem rental. I’ve been paying an extra $12.95 per month to Bell and figure I’m out around $64.75. Unless you ask Bell to update your plan they will happily take your money. Review your internet service with Bell. Check your latest bill and find out if you’re paying too much.

I Switched To Fibe 16

I decided to move up to Bell’s Fibe 16 plan for $48.95 per month which will give me:

  • Download speeds of up to 16 Mbps
  • Upload speeds of up to 1 Mbps
  • 65 GB of bandwidth

This is still cheaper than what I am paying now with a slower plan and I don’t have to rent a modem each month (they said they would waive the one time modem fee).

Lower Monthly Bandwidth

In the last 3 days, Bell has reduced the monthly bandwidth limits with each of their packages. The Fibe 12 package now allows only 40 GB per month of uploads/downloads. It used to be 50 GB per month.

The Fibe 16 package allowed 75 GB per month when I signed up earlier in the week. It now shows as being 65 GB per month! Crafty buggers. For an additional $5/month you can order what Bell calls usage insurance – 40 GB of additional bandwidth.

So a Fibe 16 package with usage insurance would cost $53.95 per month and give you a download cap of 105 GB. If you go over that limit then you pay $1/GB extra. Criminal.

Check your Internet service package with Bell Canada. Review it and make sure you’re not paying too much because Bell won’t tell you this. They’re too busy trying to figure out how they can squeeze more money out of their customers. Their new strategy seems to be: increase the download speeds and reduce the monthly bandwidth caps.

Posted in Technology at 10:40 PM