I know NSI's $35 is no longer the only game in town, and others provide better service for less. Several people I know are registering new domains (.net and .com), so on all our behalf:

1. Who would you recommend I use to get a domain? Or NOT recommend?

2. Does it matter who you use? Do they all use the same name servers, resolve name to IP equally quickly for each hit, etc.?

3. Any tips on switching an NSI domain up for renewal to another company?

Thanks!

I would try 000domains (http://www.000domains.com). I just used them for the first time this week. Everything worked without a hitch and that for $13.50 a year. They are a reseller of Tucows which is an ICANN certified registrar.

They have an easy to use interface to register domains and to transfer them from another registrar. You can update nameservers, billing information, etc. free of charge. They also have a form for registering multiple domains at one time. I like it.

Marty

I have good experience with the following and have between 1 and 10 domains with each of them.

000domains.com - $13.50 per year.
(9 domains with these guys, like the control panel)
namebargain.com - $9.99 per year, owned by register.com.
(7 with these)
totalnic.com - $17.50 per year.
(1 or 2 (can't remember) with these)
networksolutions.com - $35.00 per year
(5 with them)


I recommend going with companies such as above who specialize in domain registrations, small companies like those offering registrationg along with dozens of other services may be less experienced in the area and hence you won't receive as much support, you also risk the possibility of them nabbing your name. If you have a superb domain such as internet.com (as if) you might want to register directly with networksolutions.com, who could resist stealing such a name?.

has anyone tried Dotster.com before? they look pretty good!

http://www.register.com is 35$ a year domain transfers are a snap (because you copy and paste the needed changes in and hit ok thats it)

The support is excellent to I called on a sunday afternoon and got a person.

Good Luck

Dana

I think nambargain.com is exactly the same as register.com accept it's cheaper, much cheaper.

Originally posted by Dana
http://www.register.com is 35$ a year domain transfers are a snap (because you copy and paste the needed changes in and hit ok thats it)

The support is excellent to I called on a sunday afternoon and got a person.

Good Luck

Dana

looks similar but no 800# support and no over the phone Registrar transfers...I liked being able to transfer Registrar's over the phone filling out 7 forms would have cost me alot of time:)

I'll add my support for 000domains.com Their control panel is easier than anything NSI has, parking domains is free and automatic, and the whole process is easier than NSI's. You can even change the registrant for free, something NSI charges another $35 for. I've recommended them to my clients as well as using them personally.

I would avoid alldns.com They are $.75 cheaper, but their service is deficient. It's too easy to be ignored and it could cost you a domain name waiting to find out if it is properly registered.

I agree about only using companies that specialize in registrations. There are some out there that do hosting, web design and other things. I feel better with a company doing registrations full time.

Transferring domains from NSI is easy. Basically, you renew at the registrar you want to use.

http://www.domainmonger.com is also quite good. $17/year plus multi-year discounts. Tech support is very responsive.

Price and recommendations lead me to try 000domains.com. Thanks!

I'm with Alabanza's operation, which is BulkRegister...most of the time the domains are $10, they are very easy to change owner, contacts and nameservers in simple forms.


Right now domains are $35/5 years, which is $7/year!

I use Dotster (dotster.com) for all my domains. $15/yr, they're fast, friendly, and waaaaaay too easy to use. ;) I say that too much, but I love using them. If I didn't have a hatred for going more than 1 place to edit domain info then I'd probably try out some other places, but once I find something I like I stick to it. Right now I'm waiting on NSI to let go of my first domain so it's on my Dotster account. I can't wait to be totally free from Network Solutions. Anyway, for Avarice, I've used dotster and recommend them highly. :)

Add joker.com to that list :)

registerfree.com, is great.

I got my domain free, during a promo.

I used registerclub.com for $10 domain registration. After registering, whois showed my DNS were to bulkregister.com so I assume they use BulkRegister.

Correct, RegisterClub is a reseller for BulkRegister, and BulkRegister is owned by Alabanza :)

We also use Bulk Register. They have been having special promotions lately so the domains have been pretty cheap (~$10).

Yup, Bulk Register is cheap, although their support was lacking a bit several months ago when I needed to deal with altering some info on about 50 names.

If their emails they send out regularly are true, their support may be better now, although I've not needed anything for a while...

yes... this site is owned by REGISTER.COM themselves.

so what's the catch here ???? basically the same registrar (and they are one of the best around) but such a massive difference in pricing ???!!!!!

Learner

I think you'll find if this is true it's a bit of a marketing ploy. The same company aiming to two different markets. Some will think $10! What a bargain and jump on that, while others will think this is TOO cheap and will want to pay more thinking the extra money will bring better service, when in fact it's all the same thing.

It's ALL profit for them so losing a few dollars on one compared to the other isn't an issue, but rather the chance to grab a wider bunch of people.

If I'm wrong I await the men with axes.

Greg Moore
http://www.akashik.net

Originally posted by akashik
Some will think $10! What a bargain and jump on that, while others will think this is TOO cheap and will want to pay more thinking the extra money will bring better service, when in fact it's all the same thing.

Yup... you are right !!! that's normal consumer psychology !!!

But actually the other registrars who charge more do give more services for the higher amount charged... they offer free domain parking with one or more advertising-frame-based web pages with a do-it-yourself simple site design interface. But even then, these facilites hardly cost much when compared to the big difference in charges !!!

And nowadays, some registrars have started offering an email forwarding/service free with yourname@yourdomainname.com

It's ALL profit for them so losing a few dollars on one compared to the other isn't an issue, but rather the chance to grab a wider bunch of people.

Yeah... these registrars are just taking advantage of perceived brand value !!! A real smart move in my opinion.

Learner

Since no one else has posted it, here's the Domain Name Buyers Guide: a site that ranks registrars.

http://www.domainnamebuyersguide.com/

Originally posted by Deb Suran
Since no one else has posted it, here's the Domain Name Buyers Guide: a site that ranks registrars.

http://www.domainnamebuyersguide.com/

was out of date when I went there (in May) its good to use as a guide but do your own checking:)

just visited http://www.domainnamebuyersguide.com

Dana was right... it is still hopelessly out of date with a list of not more than 20 domain registrars.

Learner