Do I need a phone line for internet

[lyndsayjo200]

I have just about to buy a computer and have realised that I don't have any phone jacks in my rented flat at all. Do I need a phone jack to connect? BT charge nearly �80 to have one fitted - do any other companies do them?

[ID]

You need a phone line for the internet yes. It is needed for dialling up the ISP (internet service provider). get an electrician or someone in that kind of field of expertise to do it, because it isnt difficlut and isnt expensive.

[andygeog]

BT will still charge �70 to activate the line.  I've just moved into a brand new flat which had all the points in, I still got charged.

You can get a card that connects to the internet via GPRS and means you don't need a phone line, but it may be cheeper to get the phone line and pay the line rental. 

[lyndsayjo200]

I actually phoned NTL up and they said I wouldn't need any phone line and they hook it up via the modem and Cable (i Think!). But everyone else I speak to say I do need the line - confused!!!

[tomd]

It depends whether you want dial-up or broadband internet access. If you want to get cable broadband (ie. NTL, Tiscali) you do not need a phone line. For most ISDN (BT broadband) or dial-up internet you will need a phone line.

[tomd]

It depends whether you want dial-up or broadband internet access. If you want to get cable broadband (ie. NTL, Tiscali) you do not need a phone line. For most ISDN (BT broadband) or dial-up internet you will need a phone line.

[j2buttonsw]

Agreed with whats been said. I think tomd means ADSL rather than ISDN. You don't need a telephone line for cable (it is a coax cable that is fed into your house) but need an ADSL telephone line for ADSL (check whether you have an ADSL compatible telephone exchange). ISDN is another digital internet connection but you would need to be insane to subscribe to it (very expensive and relatively slow: 128 kbps max).