USENET News Services To Download Binaries

Why Pay For USENET?
USENET Plan Types Explained
Cheapest USENET Services To Download Binaries

Why Pay For USENET News Service?

Your Internet Service Provider (ISP) probably makes a free news server available to you, (e.g. news.yourisp.com), but it likely only keeps binaries 15-30 days before purging them. This can be frustrating, as older binaries will not be available. If limiting yourself to more recently-uploaded binaries serves your purposes, using your ISP's news server is the cheapest way to go.

For those who don't have a news server or would like access to older binaries, inexpensive third-party USENET News services run their own news servers and retain binaries for more than a year. Best of all, USENET services are highly affordable.

USENET Plan Types

USENET News services offer one of three plan types: an unlimited plan; a limited plan; or a pay-as-you-go plan. Let's take a closer look at each plan type.

Unlimited Monthly USENET Plans

Unlimited plans have a monthly recurring fee and do not cap bandwidth allowance. In short, one can download as much data as desired. Plans range in price and in retention times, with prices starting at $11 US Dollars (USD) per month. (Some companies now advertise for pennies less, but the price usually increases after an initial period.)

When shopping for an unlimited USENET plan, choose a company that does not require long-term contracts so you can go month-to-month with the option of canceling at any time without incurring penalties or fees. This flexibility allows you to switch into and out of an unlimited plan as needed, obligated only for a month at a time. When needs decrease you can cancel the unlimited plan and switch to pay-as-you-go with the same service or with an entirely different service (if you need service at all). Later, you can always reactivate the unlimited plan.

Limited Monthly USENET Plans

Limited plans also have recurring monthly fees, but they are less expensive because there is a download cap. These plans follow a tier structure with higher fees getting higher caps. For example, $3.00 US Dollars (USD) per month might buy a cap of 3-Gigabytes (GB) per month, while $8/mo might get 10GB. Subscribers have to pay the monthly fee whether they download anything or not, and unused bandwidth does not roll over. Should the subscriber download the full allotted amount in the first few days of the billing cycle, the news server will not allow access again until the account is refreshed by a new payment in the following billing cycle.

A limited monthly plan is a poor choice because unused bandwidth does not roll over and the charge is recurring whether you use the service in a particular month or not. The pay-as-you-go plan is a much better plan choice when an unlimited plan isn't necessary. You will get more bandwidth for your money, you'll be able to use it at your leisure, and you will avoid monthly recurring fees.

Pay-As-You-Go USENET Plans

A pay-as-you-go plan allows you to have bandwidth readily available without paying monthly fees, and is a great option when an unlimited threshold isn't required. With this type of account you purchase a block of data, also known as a block of bandwidth, for a one-time flat fee. For example, if you purchase a 20GB block from "Company A," you can use their news server until you have downloaded 20GB worth of binaries, whether that takes one day or one year. When the block is exhausted you can purchase another block of the same size, or of a different size, or you can leave the account empty until you're ready to download binaries again.

Pay-as-you-go is handy because it's so flexible. You can try out a News service for next to nothing by buying a small block for a couple dollars. If you like the service you can buy a larger block next, as larger blocks are cheaper per gigabyte, saving you money in the long run. On the other hand, some people like buying only what they require in the moment, switching between larger and smaller blocks as needed.

When shopping for a pay-as-you-go USENET News service, choose a provider that sells non-expiring blocks. This allows you to use blocks at your leisure. If you plan to download more than 30GB worth of binaries in a single month, you're probably better off getting an unlimited plan for the month, assuming you go with a low-cost provider (see recommendations below). If you only download sporadically, or less than 30GB per month, a pay-as-you-go plan is most economical. To top

Cheapest USENET News Services To Download Binaries

There are literally hundreds of USENET News services and prices vary widely. Below you will find my picks. These companies do not require long term contracts, they include SSL at no extra charge, and they have the best prices I have personally ever found. These companies have provided low-cost USENET since 2007 when other companies were (and still are) charging much more. That said, if you find a better deal, please tell me so I can include a link to the service here.

BEST UNLIMITED USENET PLAN:

offers the unusually low price of just $11 USD per month for unlimited USENET with retention over one year. (Compare this to the giant Giganews, whose comparable plan is $29.99 per month!) Astraweb's $11 plan has no speed limit, requires no long term contracts, and includes free SSL servers. As a bonus they even lock in the $11 price for the life of the account!

To get the $11 price, you have to take an ad banner like the one above. Otherwise, surfing directly to the site will give you the standard price of $15/mo. (Astraweb also offers a plan for $10/mo, but speed on that plan is throttled.)

Astraweb provides multiple news servers located in the US and in Europe. You'll have access to all addresses, but it's best to configure the server closest to your physical location as your primary server. If this news server goes down for any reason, you can use any of the others as backups.

I have never come upon a better deal than the $11 Astraweb plan. Some companies have begun to offer plans that are pennies cheaper, but the price increases on these plans after a month or two. If you know of a company that sells unlimited USENET cheaper with all the bells and whistles of Astraweb, let me know.

Runner Up: SUPERNEWS for $11.99/mo.

It's my personal opinion that as a direct result of Astraweb offering such an affordable unlimited USENET plan since 2007, (long before anyone else!), other services are finally beginning to follow suit, moving away from the expensive pricing models of companies that heretofore set the bar. As an example, in fall 2009, Supernews revamped its site, retention times and price for unlimited USENET to just $11.99/month, making it my second pick. If Astraweb doesn't float your binary boat for some reason, you might check out Supernews. To top

BEST PAY-AS-YOU-GO USENET PLAN:

is my pay-as-you-go pick with a multitude of block sizes that can fit any budget or need. Blocks start at just 2GB for $2 USD, and go all the way up to half a terrabyte (500GB) for $65 USD. Blocks are non-expiring, so you can take as long as you like to use the block up. Multiple news servers are located in the US and in Europe, and include SSL servers. Retention time is over one year. Here is their pricing page.

Usenet-News.net (not .com) has a very basic, non-flashy website, but they provide excellent pay-as-you-go service. You will never be spammed, bothered, emailed or pressured to buy more blocks. In fact, it's up to you to keep track of how much bandwidth you have left, and to buy more when and if you want it. Once you register and buy a block, you can login to the site anytime to see your history of purchases, and how much bandwidth is still available. When you purchase a block, it is immediately added to your account.

Usenet-News.net does not count USENET headers towards your bandwidth allowance, giving you an extra 10% allowance. If you purchase a 20GB block, for example, you'll be allowed to download 20GB (=2000MB) + 10% (=200MB) for a total of 2200MB or 20.2GB.

Runner up: ASTRAWEB also offers good prices on pay-as-you-go, but they only have two block sizes to choose from: 25GB or 180GB.

Again, let me know if you find better overall pay-as-you-go prices. To top

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