I have been thinking about my Internet connection lately. I have a pretty solid cable Internet connection from Distributel currently. I was nervous about signing on with them, but it has been great so far, except that things are a bit slow.

The connection that I received from them was a 10/0.5mbps connection for about $45 per month, and it comes with unlimited bandwidth. This has been a bit strange as I had a 28/2mbps connection in Ottawa for around $70 for unlimited bandwidth.

TekSavvy recently let me know that they offer cable Internet connections in my area. I could get a 30/2mbps connection with 300GB of bandwidth a month for $70 per month. Three times the download speed, and four times the upload speed for less than twice the price. The biggest disappointment though is that they have increased their unlimited bandwidth plan prices by a great deal. To get an unlimited bandwidth 10/1.5mbps connection, I would be looking at $58 per month. To add unlimited bandwidth to the 30/2mbps connection, it would be an astounding $100 per month, or what amounts to a $30 service fee that you’ll recognize later in this article.

One of the cool things that TekSavvy offers is that anything downloaded between 2am and 8am aren’t counted towards your bandwidth usage. I could easily schedule the majority of both my downloading and uploading during this time and easily fit within the constraints of the bandwidth caps offered by TekSavvy.

Start also has cable Internet connections in my area, and like most companies, they don’t really have much in the way of unlimited bandwidth options. The only unlimited bandwidth option they have available is with their 6/1.5mbps connection for $40 per month. I would lose some download speed, gain lots of upload speed and save a few dollars per month. They also have a 30/2mbps connection with 200GB bandwidth for $50 per month. This is again three times the download speed, and four times the upload speed but this time for only five dollars more a month.

This is very tempting, but I would have to be smart and monitor my bandwidth, and they don’t offer the grace period during non-peak times that TeksSavvy offers.

Last, but not least is Acanac, a provider you might not have heard about previously, but they do have some compelling offers. Unfortunately, when I first moved to Georgetown, they didn’t service this area, but it looks like they might now. They have a 28/1mbps cable Internet connection for $44 per month with unlimited bandwidth. They do note that during peak times, 7pm until midnight, you’ll be rate limited to a speed of 14/1mbps to best serve their customers, but beyond that, it seems like a good deal, and even at that rate limited speed, I would have a faster download and upload speed than I do currently.

Rogers and Bell aren’t really realistic options for me. While they can have greater download and upload speeds, their bandwidth restrictions are so archaic that I would be bled dry paying overage fees. Though to their credit, I have heard that both provide “unlimited” bandwidth to those willing to pay an extra $30 service fee.

So with Bell, I could get a 15/10mbps connection for $50 per month with 60GB bandwidth, and then pay $1/GB overage to a max of $100 or purchase unlimited bandwidth for $30 making it $80 per month.

Rogers offers a 25/2mbps connection for $52 per month with 80GB of bandwidth. Adding the $30 “unlimited” fee, and I’d be looking at $82 per month.

So at the end of the day, here are the standings:

Of course, the biggest thing I haven’t discussed in this article is the set-up costs. To move companies, I’ll have to pay set-up fees, potentially buy a modem, and it could cost me as much as $200 to switch. This isn’t really something I’d like to have to do, but assuming that the upfront costs are magically not part of the current equation, what are your thoughts?

Do I switch, and if so, to what? Do I stick with what I have? The connection has been consistent and stable.

Let me know your thoughts in the comments below, and please, don’t remind me about the amazing connections available elsewhere.

If I was still in the middle of nowhere (Walkerton), I could have a fibre connection with a maximum throughput of 1000mbps (most people are getting 40mbps down) for $43 per month (Wightman) and of course it comes with unlimited bandwidth.

Update: May 14th, 2013 – I contacted Distributel today, and they said they could give me a 30/2mbps connection, but it would be $80 per month.