Eweka
If you’re located in Europe and looking for a good Usenet service, then it’s worth checking out Eweka. This Netherlands-based outfit is a provider that puts quality and affordability first, which is obviously an enticing combination.
What it does
Eweka launched in 2001, and it’s quickly grown into one of the world’s most respected Usenet services. The majority of the company’s operations are run from its data centre facility in Amsterdam.
However, it also runs a self-built and self-owned network with POP locations in cities such as London and Frankfurt. The main attraction here is the focus on providing help to the user – when you purchase a plan, you’re given access to an in-house team who can offer support and advice. There aren’t any third-party organisations involved.
A fundamental difference between Eweka and many of the other Usenet companies out there is that it doesn’t operate any American servers. So if you plan on signing up for the service, you’ll need to have a European IP address. While that may seem inconvenient, you can still use a VPN or proxy service to gain access to servers in the States.
Performance
Most services out there offer over 3,000 days of binary retention, and things aren’t any different with Eweka. The platform lets you access more than 125,000 newsgroups, and there’s a 99.5% completion rate.
Another important point to consider when choosing the right Usenet platform is the number of connections available. Eweka gives every member eight standard or SSL connections. While some services offer more, this isn’t a disappointing number.
Customer support is a vital issue, too. Usenet services can obviously be a great boon, but not everyone has the technical knowledge to use them with ease – and things can often go wrong. Should you ever have a question or encounter a bug, you can reach the company’s support desk via email. It’s open from Monday to Friday, and you can expect to get a reply within one to three working days.
Data options
There are two main subscription plans you can choose between. You get access speeds of up to 50Mbps with the standard account, and double that (100Mbps) if you plump for the ‘high-speed’ account.
The standard plan costs €7.50 per month (£6.10, $7.90) and gives you full access to available newsgroups, no usage limits, access to an online control panel and customer support. You get all that with the high-speed account, as well, plus faster performance levels for €9.60 per month (£8.20, $10.10) – the only difference being that you can’t share your account with other users here.
Final verdict
Eweka is a solid Usenet choice for those based in Europe. While it’s slightly frustrating that you can’t access US servers, this can be fixed by using a VPN service. There’s plenty of retention available, and while the data options and available connections are on the moderate side, there’s enough here to get the job done.
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