IX Web Hosting

Hostorian — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 06:42:27 +0000

IX Web Hosting Ratings

An excellent web host — highly recommended!
Click here to visit IX Web Hosting’s website

Summary

ix Web hosting has been in business for just over ten years, and they show their love for customers in several ways. They have a great support system for clients, have specials happening throughout the year, and offer a free 7 day trial, plus a 30 day money-back guarantee after those first seven days. They have a lot of other services to offer beyond a hosting account, allowing you to find the ideal product for your site.

Quick Facts About IX Web Hosting

ix Web hosting was founded in 1999, has 110,000 clients, and hosts 470,000 sites.
Web Hosting Services: Expert Plan ($3.95/month), Unlimited Pro Plan ($7.95), Business Plan ($7.95).
Phone: 800-385-0450

Products and Services by IX Web Hosting

ix Web Hosting has three hosting plans available. The Expert Plan is priced at $3.95/month, Unlimited at $7.95, and Business at $7.95.

All three plans include unlimited amount of domain names to host, unlimited bandwidth, and an unlimited amount of storage space. That is simply outstanding pricing for the Expert Plan, but it gets even better. It includes a free domain name registration (3 for Unlimited, and 2 for Business Plus). The main differences between the hosting plans occurs with the amount of MySQL databases and their capacities, and the amount of email accounts and the inbox storage. With the Unlimited Pro account, you receive 10 GB of space to host an unlimited amount of email accounts. The Unlimited Pro account is accurate when it says it’s unlimited.

Hostorian’s Review of IX Web Hosting

IX Web Hosting’s Performance

ix Web Hosting offers a 99.9% guarantee for uptime, plus a 30 day money-back guarantee for all hosting plans.

In addition, there is a free 7 day trial available, and your credit card is not charged until after those seven days have expired. They also offer UPS Power/Back-up Generator, Firewall protection, 24/7 server monitoring service, and a spam filter.

IX Web Hosting’s Features

All hosting plans come with the ability to install different web software, forums, blogs, online shops, and CMS. Unfortunately, they do not include a list of the software that is available to install. There is also free web templates to use, an online web editor, full multimedia support (Flash, streaming audio, streaming video), and full support for all major scripting languages.

Support and Customer Care by IX Web Hosting

Support for ix Web Hosting comes in four different flavours: 24/7 phone support, 24/7 ticket system, live chat during business hours, and a catalogue of video tutorials.

Topics for the videos vary from setting up an email client for your account, transferring your domain, and setting up WordPress, amongst others. They are all very informative and easy to understand.

Something a bit different about ix Web Hosting is that they assign you a Support Hero, someone you get to know over the length of your hosting contract that can help you out with all your issues. I thought this is a nice touch, because the support person would have first-hand knowledge of any previous issues you have had.

Pros

Great pricing with lots of features included.
Personal Support person assigned to handle your account.
Great reviews from current clients.

Cons

No clear list of software available to install
A few customers noted downtimes, but ix Web Hosting is open about their issues over at http://status.ixwebhosting.com

Actual Customer Reviews for IX Web Hosting

“Ix has solved every problem encountered in a professional and timely manner. The support has been great on all matters needing attention. Live support waiting time was very minimal for the few times help was needed and all issues were resolved to my satisfaction.” - Donald Clem

“Generally there were a few issues to start but I have found that with most hosting companies. Ix have consistently helped me to do things that other hosts just refer you to articles to read.
I don’t usually write reviews but have felt that after reading many reviews that it is only fair to give credit where it is due.” - Trevor L

“I had a problem today and Alexey has assisted me, his support was amazing, professional and friendly. I love the online chat, always get great results and what I most love is that no-one treats me as an idiot even though I have limited knowledge of websites and no knowledge of programming.
Thank you! Alway recommend for others, has been hosting our other businesses for over 5 years with ix.” - Erika

Verdict of this IX Web Hosting Review

ix Web Hosting looks like one of the best kept secrets for hosting companies. They offer a lot, especially if you’re willing to pay the extra dollar a month to get the Unlimited plan, and their prices are extremely low in comparison to some other companies out there. The plans are loaded with features, and has the great option to try out their services risk-free for seven days. That gives you plenty of time to get familiar with the administrative tools and the tutorial videos.

Some customers noted some down times, but after scanning over the status logs that ix Web Hosting posts, some of them are fairly minor, and I have yet to see a duplicate issue. One user suggested that if your business needed a solid 24/7 uptime that they choose a different hosting solution.

Because of all the positive reviews that I came across on the web, I will have to say ix Web Hosting is one of the best companies available on the web to host your site on. It is rare to come across a company that receives positive comments, is customer service oriented, and has some great web tutorials. ix Web Hosting is highly recommended and gets a rating of 4.5/5.

Click here to go to IX Web Hosting’s official website.

Streaming Video Hosting

Hostorian — Sun, 25 Apr 2010 23:39:35 +0000

Streaming video has taken over the internet with the emergence of both free and paid streaming video hosting services.

However, as this phenomenon continues to grow, many webmasters are left wondering about where they should host their videos. Some people prefer to host the videos on their own server, while others prefer using a streaming video hosting service.

Regardless of which option you choose, there are some important facets that need to be kept in mind.

There are potential drawbacks wherever your decide to host your videos. The key is choosing which drawbacks may apply to your situation and avoid them.

Free Streaming Video Hosting

Free streaming video hosting through websites like YouTube have grown extremely popular; however, there are some potential drawbacks that may affect your website.

The first is that YouTube will provide links to related videos near your video. If your competition has a related video, then it is possible to lose your customer to them.

However, if you are adding the video to your website as well, this could be minimized, especially if the video is product-specific.

YouTube also has a tendency to make videos look a little grainy. This is because they reformat your video so that it takes up less space. If it is reformatted poorly, there is very little that you will be able to do.

Commercial Streaming Video Hosting

The primary drawback to commercial hosting is that it can be outside the range of many new businesses budgets, and even beyond their needs.

It is important to decide if paying a commercial streaming video hosting provider is actually worth the cost.

Additionally, if you choose an unreliable commercial provider, there is a chance that your videos will not be available when someone visits your website.

Hosting Streaming Videos Yourself

It can be argued that hosting streaming videos on your own server will eat up your bandwidth as well as your disk space.

However, if you need less than 1000 total minutes of play-time a day, then hosting it yourself may not be a bad option. Unfortunately, once your website grows, you may need to get more server space as well as more bandwidth.

Streaming video hosting has become essential to many websites. While the importance of video isn’t doubted, the problem lies in where to host the videos. All three options have their potential drawbacks, but at least one option will fit your needs.

the hostorian (& his reviews!) » streaming video hosting