Looking through the threads, I've seen many posts on how unrealistic "Unlimited" bandwidth is, and I agree that offering unlimited bandwidth probably won't happen.

However, I still have questions that are unanswered (at least, in the messages I've searched for). So, please bear with the newbie trying to get some advice! :stickout

I've agreed to help a friend find a good web hosting service, and it must offer a lot of bandwidth. Her site is currently averaging around 900-1000 hits/day, with more visitors expected. I estimate that the webspace she uses is around 10-20 megs, maybe more. I'm not sure if this is a reasonable estimate or not, but I think her site will need at least 10 gigs/month (Preferably around 20 gigs, she might need more).

Soo, does anyone know of any reliable hosts that offer high bandwidth? Keeping in mind, she doesn't have the budget to pay hundreds of dollars every month.

Also, the web hosts that offer Unlimited bandwidth - how much bandwidth in reality do they usually offer? (e.g. they ask for more payment after the website exceeds X gigs/month)?

And last question, has anyone ever heard of/used (www.webintellects.com) or (www.winsave.com)? I'm rather skeptical about their claims, and was wondering if anyone could give me a definite review? (Yes, they are the evil hosting companies that "promise" Unlimited bandwidth.) :P

Thanks for taking your time to read this incredibly dull and long post.

10GB is really not all that much bandwidth. You should be able to take your pick of reliable hosts. For what your friend needs, you should be able to find something fairly cheap. As long as the bandwidth is below about 20GB, you're still in pretty good budget territory. Once you get up to about 20GB you are going to be paying a lot more for quality bandwidth. Beware of those who don't actually charge for it, because it usually means that they are overselling.

As for the unlimited claims. Most of them have a clause in their TOS that states something like if you exceed what we believe to be a reasonable amount of bandwidth, your account will be terminated. In a lot of cases, this "reasonable" amount of bandwidth is only a few GB per month.

Hope that helps a bit.

-Dan

Again I find myself reccommending www.phenominet.com but be aware it is cogent bandwidth (yet reliable)

Just how reliable is phenominet? Their offer for Tier 1 seems almost too good to be true. $4.95/month and "Unlimited" bandwidth? I have searched in other forums and the site itself gets pretty good reviews, but I'm still sorta suspicious...

I learned of phenominet.com on this bulletin board and I am very pleased with them. I am a Tier I customer ($30 a year for non-commercial).

I have used many webhosts and prefer them above cedant.com and the freebies like tripod and geocities (which have NO customer service... even if you pay for an upgraded site.)

Actually, Cedant is pretty good but got to be too expensive because of their charges for data transfer (aka bandwidth). That's what got me to Phenominet.

Cedant and Phenominet have great customer service, but Phenominet is faster and more personal. My only concern is that they make enough money to stay in business... so I hope to keep sending people their way.

For $4.95/mo or $30/yr, what have you got to lose? I recommend trying them if you haven't done so already.

Peter
caloriesperhour.com

I seriously doubt unlimited bandwidth exists in practical ... in theory yes but when your site uses too much ... upgrade or pay more ... that's what they always do

What's her budget? If she has a reasonable amount to spend -- say around $20 a month or less -- she should not have any difficulty finding a reliable hosting package with those specifications.