BargainhostUK is a web hosting company that focuses on low priced services while keeping service levels high to maintain and expand their customer base. Based in the UK with data centers located “throughout Europe” since 2001.
BargainhostUK caters to businesses and organizations as well as home users. In addition to low-cost hosting solutions, dedicated server space and domain registration are offered. All items are clearly marked with terms and prices which make estimating prices simple.
BargainhostUK offers a 99.9% uptime guarantee and lists specific provisions as to what does and does not count towards downtime. Additionally, a simple schedule of downtime by percentage is displayed to make clear the amount of discount customers can expect. However, the list is extensive enough to possibly raise customer concern; while some topics are listed as outside of BargainhostUK’s control, other events, such as email service (which are not eligible to count towards downtime) would appear to be the responsibility of the hosting organization. The site also states clearly that refunds are only issued as credit towards future services.
While data center locations are not revealed on the site, BargainhostUK lists such features as 24/7 monitoring, green cooling technology, triple electrical supply as well as physical presence in the datacenter around the clock.
A variety of plans with different levels of memory and storage space are offered, starting as low as £1.50, or approximately $5US per month. A no-contract policy offers flexibility for new as well as existing sites. No set up fees are charged for cloud or dedicated server configuration; same-day availability is also offered.
A systems log monitor, as well as spam filters and site-building tools are also included, as are security and file management tools.
BargainhostUK uses Linux cloud services for their hosting operations and offers Windows, Linux, FreeBSD & virtualization for their dedicated server offerings.
Another offering is domain names at the individual and bulk level. Bulk domain transfer is also available, and transfer service is listed as no-charge for .co.uk and .uk domains while others such as .com, .net and .org are approximately $20-$80US. Renewals are shown as an annual charge of $8-$20US. Transfer rates vary, with prices going from free to roughly $20. Domain re-selling services are also a line of business, with an easy tool available to check availability.
A simple and attractive customer portal is available for existing customers to see recent announcements, tweets and testimonials.
As for policies, BargainhostUK has a list of content and activities that are forbidden and subject to account suspension or termination, including pirating, file-sharing and backup storage. Also, certain scripts used for posting to bulletin boards are prohibited due to excess resource consumption.
BargainhostUK offers online ticketing, live help via chat as well as traditional phone support 24/7/365. A clear and concise knowledgebase page lists many common issues where users can research their issues before calling to minimize any downtime or service impairment.
Prices seem competitive for both hosting and dedicated server space and BargainhostUK offers a 30-day money back guarantee for all services. As mentioned, web hosting starts at about $5US per month and dedicated server space starts at approximately $20US and goes up to about $80US per month. However, at the time of review the dedicated server page noted that this service was sold out.
BargainhostUK offers a wide variety of services that are geared toward the home and small business user. The site appears to be very user-friendly and offers several authoring tools that customers can use free of charge which adds value to their low price.
Overall, BargainhostUK appears to be a solid choice for their target audience.
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