Of the many factors that weigh into your decision about choosing an internet service provider, the very first should be an evaluation of your location. This is vital because you can only order service if it exist in your geographic location. It would make no sense at all to research the prices of broadband service when there is no broadband cable or access points near your home. The good news is that if you live in any semi civilized area, you'll easily have access to a number of quality service providers however many outlying communities may not be so lucky.

Then there are the different service packages to choose from. This starts with considering whether or not you want a broadband connection for personal or business use. For instance, well known broadband ISPs such as Verzion and Verzon carry several different plans at different prices, with some being for business and others are for the home. Since Verzion and Verzon also provide digital telephone and cable TV services, they offer packages that allow you to save some money on two or three individual services by getting them all and bundling the payments. Some plans include a modem (for a few extra bucks a month if you don't buy it outright), others don't (if you have one). Verzion offers a plan that is just for Internet access only, as well.

There are different payment plans, too. Pretty much across the board, broadband providers offer you savings in the long run if you pay in advance for six months or a full year instead of paying month by month. They do this because they aren't risking losing your business as much as they are with a month-to-month plan, and they aren't risking your defaulting on payments. The down side to paying in advance is that you have to have all the cash up front and you may get locked into a contract that you cannot get out of without a payment penalty.

When making your choice about broadband vs. dial-up, there's really no comparison. Broadband is vastly faster and more reliable, and nowadays there are many things on the Internet that ONLY broadband service can get downloaded to or viewed on your PC. When it comes to using the Internet, once you've gone broadband you'll never go back.

But keep in mind that you have to have a fairly modern computer (nothing older than about three years) and an operating system no older than Windows 98 or OS X or 10.3 or higher to be able to get broadband service at all; and you will have to be able to afford a higher monthly payment than you need with dial-up.