Astraweb Review
Astraweb Review: Everything you need to know in 2023
Astraweb is a popular Usenet Service Provider which been in the business for over 23 years. The company started its operations back in 1997, and it’s known for affordable Usenet Access. The company has a good retention period and some other great features which we will discuss today. In this Astraweb Review, we will tell you everything you need to know about the service in 2023. Let’s get started.
Astraweb Review
Pricing 7 Plans
Astraweb has been in the business for over two decades, and the company has developed comprehensive plans which are suitable for both new and veteran Usenet Users. In this section, we will provide all the details related to Astraweb Plans
The company offers both regular and block plans which you can pick depending on your requirements.
If you look at the regular plans, you will find the three plans. The major difference between the three regular plans is the duration. The overall features are the same, and you get the following features in all regular plans.
- Unlimited Speed
- 50 Concurrent Connections
- SSL Connections
- Over 4000 Days of Retention Period
- Priority Customer Support
The pricing of regular plans is as follows
Astraweb Review
- 1 Month Regular Plan will cost you $15 per month.
- 3 Months Regular Plan will cost you $13 per month.
- 12 Months Regular Plan will cost you $8 per month.
If you look at the block plans, you get the three plans. Each block comes with its own Data Size, which you can pick depending on your requirement. The company offers the following Block Plans.
- Basic – The Basic Block Plan comes with 25 GB of data, and it’s available for $10. In this plan, you don’t get any speed limits and 50 concurrent connections to max your internet bandwidth.
- Standard – The Standard Block Plan comes with 180 GB of data, and it’s available for $25. Like the basic plan, it also comes with unlimited speed and 50 concurrent connections.
- Premium – The Premium Block Plan comes with 1000 GB of data, and you can get it for $50. The plan comes with all the features you get in basic and standard plans.
Free Trial
No, Astraweb doesn’t come with any free trial option, which means that you will need to get the regular plan to test the service. However, the company offers the 24 hours refund option, which allows you to claim your refund within 24 hours if you are not satisfied with the performance.
Usenet Search Client
No, Astraweb doesn’t come with its own Usenet Search Client, which means that you will need to consider the 3rd party Usenet Search Clients to find NZBs. If you are interested, you can check reviews of our Top Usenet Search Clients on our website.
Retention Period
Astraweb is one of those Usenet Service Providers which has improved its Retention Period drastically in the last few years. The company offers a retention period of 4000 days which is one of the best in the industry. It’s surely lower than the likes of Newshosting and UsenetServer, but it’s good considering the overall price.
Astraweb Review
Does Astraweb have a Newsreader?
No, like most Usenet Service Providers, Astraweb doesn’t have its own newsreader, which means that you will need to use the 3rd party newsreaders. The good thing is that Astraweb has detailed guides in the support section, which you can use to set up Astraweb with 3rd party newsreaders such as Grabit, Newsbin Pro, and NZBGet. You can check reviews of these Newsreaders and other popular newsreaders in our Newsreaders Review Section.
Astraweb Review
NEWS SERVERS / PORTS / CONFIGURATION
The company has its servers both in the US and EU, which you can pick depending on your location for better speed and performance.
If you want to connect with non-SSL Servers, you can use the following ports: 119, 23, 1818, 8080. Here are the Name Servers details.
- News.astraweb.com
- If you want to connect to European Servers: eu.news.astraweb.com
- If you want to connect to US Servers: us.news.astraweb.com
If you want to connect to SSL Servers, you can use the following ports: 443, 563. Here are the Name Servers details.
- Ssl.astraweb.com
- If you want to connect to European SSL Servers: ssl-eu.news.astraweb.com
- If you want to connect to US SSL Servers: ssl-us.news.astraweb.com
Payment Options
Astraweb is known for its variety of payment options, and the company offers the majority of mainstream payment options. Astraweb offers the following options.
Astraweb Review
- Credit Cards
- iDeal
- Bitcoin – Ideal for Anonymous Payments
Connections & Speed
Astraweb offers a whopping 50 concurrent connections for its users, which are more than enough for all types of Usenet Users, including new Users, veterans, and power users. You can use these 50 connections to max our internet bandwidth easily.
If we look at the speed, Astraweb offers unlimited speed, and we tested the service with our 50 MB/s connection. In our tests, we found an average speed of 48 MB/s which is more than the average of what we get with other Usenet Service Providers. It’s mainly due to the fact that the company has its own servers in the US and Europe, which translates to better speed. We would also recommend you connect to your nearest servers to get better performance and speed.
Privacy Policy
Astraweb comes with a very clear privacy policy where the company clearly states that it doesn’t log any activities of its users. However, the company does log the general performance stats of its servers which are completely general, and they are not linked to any users.
The overall Privacy Policy of Astraweb is solid, but we still recommend that you use a good VPN to ensure your privacy. The company doesn’t offer its own VPN, but you can use any third-party VPN to protect your identity and activities. If you are interested, please check our VPN Section, where we have shared the detailed reviews of popular VPN Services.
Customer Support
The overall service of Astraweb is up to modern standards, but unfortunately, we can’t say the same about its Customer Support. The company still users the email-based ticketing system, which is generally pretty slow, and it can take up to 3-5 working days to get the initial response.
The company does have the FAQ Section with a built-in Search engine which you can use to find the answers to frequent questions. The FAQ Section also features the setup and configuration guides which you can use to configure Astraweb with other Usenet Newsreaders.
Astraweb Review
The overall customer support of Astraweb is average, and they can surely add more Customer Support mediums to enhance the response rate.
Conclusion
Astraweb is surely a great Usenet service provider with some great features. The good thing about Astraweb is that it offers a variety of Plans, including Block Plans, which are not offered by many Usenet Service Providers. The company also offers a decent retention period and a good privacy policy. If we look at the drawbacks, the major drawback is that the company lacks the Newsreader, Usenet Search Engine, and a VPN which may be a dealbreaker for some people. Overall, if you are looking for a decent Usenet Service provider with servers in the US and EU, Astraweb is a solid option for you. We also recommend that you check reviews of the other Usenet Service Providers and then make your decision. Good Luck!