There are a few internet service provider (ISP) options available to you.
Yahoo BB
Yahoo BB is the most widespread ISP and there's a very useful service called BBApply which helps English-speakers (and JETs in particular) get signed up with the service. It is especially useful for people from the US as calling the US from a house/apartment with YahooBB only about ¥2.5 per minute.
| Pros
|
Cons
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- Cheap landline
- Good international rates
- Easy to turn into a network or use with wireless
|
- Dodgy English service
- May have to deal wth NTT
- Not available in all areas
|
Friendly site for Gaijin: http://www.eikaiwa.net/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi
Local cable company
List of regional providers
| Pros
|
Cons
|
- Flexble bandwidth pricing plans
- Available wherever there is cable TV
- Don't need a landline.
|
- Dodgy English service
- May be hard to get setup
|
ISDN/ADSL
NTT Flets
OCN
Asahi net
| Pros
|
Cons
|
- Great if you already have a landline
|
- Not available in all areas
- Need a landline
|
Fiber Optics
Someone want to fill this out? There are no less than 100,000 ads for NTT Flets Hikari around.
Wireless service
Willcom
| Pros
|
Cons
|
- Service wherever there is a phone signal
- Great for laptops
|
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