I've been with Zen on their 8000 Lite package since 3rd August 2007 and am very impressed by (a) amazing speed (BT speed checker: 6240 kbps); (b) excellent support portal; (c) worked "out of the box" with minimal hassle; (d) reliability.
BUT! I now realise just how little 2Gb per month is. Man, this line EATS data like there's no tomorrow. It struck me last night that where I had been using dial-up for years and complaining about the slow speed, it was at least free, once I'd paid my £14.99 a month. I could dial up as often as I wanted and stay online for hours at a time if I wanted to. I could leave unimportant downloads to complete while I went shopping, it didn't cost me a bean extra. Now, however, EVERYthing I do online is counted! The BBC parliament or newscasts, Channel 4 snippets, YouTube videos - my 2Gb disappeared faster than snow on a hot griddle. Every downloaded byte is like death by a thousand cuts. I've already had to buy more capacity and August is only half-done.
Now, while buying extra download was a doddle, it ain't cheap! £1.49 per Gb doesn't sound like a lot, but when it's gone in a flash movie or two, it is! And when I compare the price of Lite with that of Active, it seems like the logical choice is to grab another 18 Gb per month for an extra £7 and regrade to Active.
But will 20Gb be enough? I'm having my doubts. I think in the Age of the Internet 2Gb is pitifully low, 20Gb is miserly and a reasonable download capacity for a price one can afford should start at around 50Gb.
I don't know whether Zen are contemplating their capacities, but I don't have a bottomless money-pit to draw funds from. Like everything in this life, I have to look at the competition and weigh up the pros and cons.