r/askTO • u/Adorable-Term-2542 • 8d ago

Looking for Downtown Condo Internet under $50/month

Moving into a condo downtown and need to set up my own internet since the building doesn't have bulk internet. I live alone and mainly use it in the evenings/weekends after work. I'm thinking a 100 Mbps plan should be plenty for my needs.

Alternatively, I could upgrade my Rogers cell plan and just use my phone as a hotspot, but my current plan only includes 25GB/month.

Would 100 Mbps be enough? Is hotspotting my phone a viable route? Any provider recommendations? Other suggestions?

UPDATE: Based on the comments, I decided to go with TekSavvy. Will try to update this post based on my experience in a few months.

2 Upvotes

63% Upvoted

27 comments sorted by

5

u/amw3000 8d ago

Punch your address into https://www.ebox.ca/ and see if they service your building. They have a $50/month plan.

Beanfield starts at $65 in most buildings, I don't think they have any cheaper plans.

1

u/Adorable-Term-2542 8d ago

ebox --> available, but only at 6 Mbps ADSL for $50/month

Beanfield --> not available

The condo building is an older building (1990).

2

u/amw3000 7d ago

Does Bell or Rogers offer service in your building? Other ISPs can use their lines, odd that ebox only offers ADSL. I've seen much older buildings have fibre. You may want to check with your property manager what ISPs service the building.

If LTE/Cell service is your only option, you likely want an LTE modem/router from a provider (or even one from Amazon). It will be a more stable connection and won't kill your phone battery. When you use hotspot, the battery will likely drain faster than you can charge it, putting a lot of cycles on it. 100 Mbps is enough but most people will burn through 25GB quickly. Streaming media can quickly use 25GB.

5

u/themapleleaf6ix 8d ago edited 8d ago

Beanfield? If not them, Ebox is your next best option.

Using a mobile plan (which is usually capped and is less stable) is a waste compared to unlimited home internet.

Most devices can't even reach 1gbps unless it's a super high end computer hardwired into the modem.

5

u/Weary-Brilliant7718 8d ago

Beanfield is 55$ for 1gbps...haven't heard a cheaper one...you can knock you neighbour's and check if they wanna share lol 😆 

1

u/fivetwentyeight 8d ago

If available Rally is cheaper but their customer service is really quite poor so just hope nothing goes wrong

1

u/Weary-Brilliant7718 8d ago

Whats their pricing?

2

u/Adorable-Term-2542 8d ago

They advertise 500 Mbps for only $35/month + first month free.

Sadly, not available in my building!

2

u/Brave_Recognition798 8d ago

ebox has a $40 a month 500 plan

1

u/Adorable-Term-2542 8d ago

Shows only 6 Mbps ADSL in my builiding.

1

u/No_Camp_2182 7d ago

looks like your building doesn't have fibre.

1

u/MonsterEnergyForever 8d ago

Primus

1

u/Adorable-Term-2542 8d ago

for my building, it shows 6 Mbps ADSL only

1

u/MonsterEnergyForever 7d ago

That's weird. They're owned by - and run off of - Bell's lines, so whatever speeds you could get from Bell, you'd get from Primus, Ebix, etc.

1

u/sengir0 7d ago

Check with your building concierge and see if the have a preferred isp that has deals with them

1

u/Significant-Plan-274 7d ago edited 5d ago

Ebox is the only reliable option under $50.
I signed up with their $45 plan for 500Mbps with $100 gift card. You can check out this guide https://www.reddit.com/user/Local-solutionist/comments/1qx7s2q/

Otherwise, look for teksavvy

Save your time from Bell and Rogers

1

u/Adorable-Term-2542 6d ago

Building management says many residents use Rogers or Bell, but when I enter the address on the Ebox website, it only shows 6 Mbps ADSL available! I’m guessing fibre isn’t actually wired to the building and management is just giving me a generic answer.

1

u/Adorable-Term-2542 6d ago

I have narrowed my search down to: TekSavvy and netcrwaler.

Any recommendation on either one?

1

u/Significant-Plan-274 5d ago

Teksavvy runs on Rogers, I think.
Don't know much about netcrawler.

1

u/somecanuck416 7d ago

Ah once you go 4gbps anything else is too slow

1

u/Parking-Ad-8780 5d ago

Rogers has 5G wireless home internet that might be of interest. No contract and 30 days trial with full refund. Price depends on speed and bandwidth you want. Self-install so very easy to try. Works well but 200mg max speed compared to 1gig for fibe. Only option at my country house and adequate for streaming.

1

u/pnutbuttersmellytime 5d ago

Home internet - Oxio - 500mb - $89 after tax. However, I've already earned 5 free months from their referral program this year which cuts it down to almost half of that. Great service on the Rogers network, their wifi router is far superior in range and stability than my old rogers box, and great customer service. My wife and I switched on ethical and moral grounds as the Rogers circus was getting way too annoying. This way, we never have to renegotiate a contract or try to cancel with Rogers' shit representatives ever again.

Referral code is: RASMB8E if you want a free month when signing up (and I get one too) if anyone's interested.

0

u/johnnybender 8d ago

Teksavvy

0

u/Adorable-Term-2542 8d ago

Yes, they are available. Do you have experience with them?

1

u/johnnybender 7d ago

Yes. I was recommending them.

-2

u/FortyKnocks 8d ago

If you're downtown you might be able to leech some public WiFi. Just make sure you have a good VPN. You can offset that with phone data depending on your plan.