Web Hosting Talk : Web Hosting Main Forums : Dedicated Server : UK2.net

UK2.net offers a £29 (that is UK pound) dedicated Cobalt Raq at http://powerraq.com - this sounds like an extremely good deal.
I've been reading quite a lot of posts here that say 'if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is'... 29 pounds for a RAQ does sound too good to be true.
However, they say they purchased 500 servers at once, which gave them a discount, and that's why they can offer it for that price. Sounds ok.
They also seem to be a respectable company. The website looks nice, nothing special, but clean and simple. They seem to have a good connection, too. There website loads fast (from here in Belgium, which isn't really that far from the uk), and when I ping them, it has pretty good results.

But there are two things I'm concerned about. The first thing is you have to pay 3 years in advance. They claim to do this to keep the prices low. 3x12x29 is 1044 pounds, which isn't really that much for what you get. I know most of you don't like a policy where you have to pay in advance, and I too would prefer to pay on a per month basis. But if paying 3 years in advance is what it takes to own a reasonable dedicated server at such an affordable price, maybe it's worth considering.
My other concern is the fact that there's no email adress on the page. This I find VERY fishy. They claim that this too is an attempt to keep their prices low. That way they don't loose time to answer emails, and time is money.
If it wasn't for this, I would've already gotten a RAQ from them. Paying 3 years in advance isn't fun, but it might be worth it. However, not being able to mail them (you can contact them once you have your server though...) doesn't feel right at all.
I know most of you will advice me to stear away from this company. But honestly, what's the worst thing that could happen? Could I loose all my money without getting a server? Probably not, someone would've sued them already. Is there anything else that could happen? Because even though the 3 years in advance is inconvenient, I don't really care too much about that.
Does anyone have experience with uk2.net? I'd like to hear from you.

Sorry for the overwhelmingly long post. I seem to type way too fast :p
Also, sorry if my English isn't that excellent, I'm from Belgium...

maybe this is interesting too:
http://amail.co.uk/number1.htm
they claim to be number 1, and posted some quotes and articles from the press on that page... if the guardian, sunday times, internet works and cnn thrust this company, maybe I should too...

Support??? What's that???

If you need support it is provided by a 3rd party... enough said.

(also there are hidden charges)

ont the guardian site, more specifically on this page : http://www.guardianunlimited.co.uk/Archive/Article/0,4273,4056874,00.html , I found this quote: "and I also really like UK2." - whith a link to the uk2.net website.
I have no personal interest in this company, but I'm just investigating, and posting it here so others can benefit from it too... because £29 per month isn't a lot, the only question is : how reliable is this company... I'm trying to find answers for that question, and so far, I'm impressed, but not convinced enough to get a server from them... I would appreciate any opinions on this subject. Also, if you would happen to stumble across other articles that mention them, please let me know!

[Podge]

I remember some time ago, a conversation in alt.internet.providers.uk about uk2.net.

While I cannot recall the specifics, whoever posted the initial message was complaining about some extra charges he was being billed for.

I suggest you read the terms and conditions carefully, ask in the above newsgroup and do a search in Deja.com for any posts relating to uk2.net

Hope this helps.

I found a site that is run by uk2 clients for the clients.

At the moment there is a DNS Petition going on, they are trying to get their money back for the hidden DNS costs.

Check it out at http://www.uk2raq.com

[Chicken]

Just check the amount of transfer that comes with that, and how much it will cost you over that. DNS charges? I'd check that out, as well as examine the TOS carefully. Paying for 3 years of anything without fully knowing what you are getting into could mean that you want to get out after a month, and having 35 months to go...

Thanks for your advice ppl.

I just posted the question wheter or not it's worth it in the forum of uk2raq.com - I'll keep you posted.

[MattF]

The server you are getting is not top-of-the-range nowhere near, in three years time it would be like having a Pentium 75mhz 12mb ram with 500mb data transfer. With RaQ I would expect to have free upgrade every year or 18 months, or be able to cancel contract and sign-up again without losing half the cost.

Uk2.net pricing for RAQ3 now £25 pm (over 3 years) with 10GB bandwidth inclusive per month.

Sounds good for hosting lots of simple web sites.

£ to $ rate 1.45

[Keeg]

I think in order to really appreciate their offer it needs to be broken down.
ill do this in US dollars because its easier
your paying 1305.00 for three years essentially for a raq
they claim to include 10 gigs of bandwidth but in their contract it states only 5 gigs so im not sure what's up with that. lets assume you actually have 10 gigs that's 360 gigs of bandwidth over 3 yrs.
you will also need a support contract in order to get anything done, that's an additional 310.00 for the 3 yrs so your essentially paying 1600.00 for hosting for three years assuming you have a small site and you don't expect it to grow at all for the next three years this is an extremely good deal. now lets look at reality in real life webmasters learn a lot more stuff over the years and people actually start to visit their sites. this is a point that Uk2.net is counting on. they charge 10.13 a gig for transfer over 10 gigs lets assume a site starts with 5 gigs and grows by 15% a month. after 6 months that site will be at 10 gigs remember you have a 3 year contract. at one year you will be at 20 gigs and will have paid an additional 330.00 in bandwidth charges alone, still not a bad deal, but you have 2 years left to go. year two you will grow from approx 20 gigs to 54 gigs, this will cost you an additional 2750.00 in bandwidth. lets assume you get irritated at this point and decide not to allow your site any more growth. (pretty silly as that is how you make money) and assume an additional cost of 2750.00 in the third year as well. you have now paid 7720.00 for hosting for 3 yrs or 214.00 a month so back to the beginning if it looks to good to be true it is ok i made a lot of assumptions in this example, and my % growth wasnt 100% accurate but it does show how it works.


Steve

[DaveC#]

UK2.net are a joke: Stay away

[Chicken]

I don't think Steve's scenario is that far off, and besides just one site's growth, the way it is set up it kinda limits you if you want to serve other sites. 3 year contract alone makes me jump out of my socks. I wouldn't sign up for a hosting account at $10/mo for three years, let alone a dedicated server. Just my $0.99