Is It Possible to Get an Online Service Without Tying It Into Your Home Phone or TV?

A number of companies offer stand-alone, or naked, DSL services you can subscribe to without taking any other products. Both AT&T; and Verizon provide Internet-only deals you can sign up to without opting into phone or television bundles. Your local telecoms provider may also be able to supply you with an Internet-only service. You can check availability in your area by visiting Internet service providers' websites and entering your ZIP code.

If you watch cable television and use a phone line as well as surfing the Internet, it will usually work out cheaper for you to go for a bundled package rather than a naked DSL deal. Although the prices of stand-alone Internet services are generally lower than they used to be, paying for everything separately is likely to cost you more. As you'll need a phone line to receive your DSL Internet service, it will usually make financial sense to at least bundle your line rental.

If you can do without some premium content, you can save money by not subscribing to cable at all and relying on free video services for your televisual entertainment. You can also make savings by finding a cheap phone line provider and using free VoIP applications to make calls. Streaming video and making VoIP calls can be very data-intensive, so you'll need to keep an eye on your data usage if you don't have an unlimited monthly allowance.

Another way of accessing the Internet without tying yourself to bundled deals is to sign up for a wireless dongle service. You won't get the speeds offered by a fixed-line service and your monthly data allowance is likely to be low, but you'll be able to access the Internet wherever you go and won't have to sign up for other services.