Pure Usenet Review
Top10Usenet is a world expert in testing Usenet providers. Our picks have been featured on TechRadar, LifeHacker, How-To Geek, Tom's Guide, and more.
Verdict: 4 out of 5
Pure Usenet is a Netherlands based Usenet provider founded in 2000.
They do not require a Dutch IP address to sign-up, so anyone around the world can access their servers. Pure Usenet also offers a 7-day free trial to test their services, which is ample time to see how you’d use it.
New to Usenet? Pure Usenet is a budget provider with attractive pricing and good service, but it does not have a built-in newsreader like our top choices, Newshosting, Eweka, and Easynews which are our top choices for Usenet newbies because they provide a more complete Usenet access solution.
Pure Usenet Category Ratings
| Retention | 3/5 |
| Performance | 4/5 |
Privacy and Security
|
5/5 |
Pricing
|
5/5 |
| Getting Started | 3/5 |
Pros
- Low-cost Dutch provider
- Unlimited speeds & downloads
Cons
- Lower retention than other providers
- Doesn’t have its own newsreader software
Pure Usenet Features
- Great Price — Pure Usenet is one of the best value Usenet providers in the US or EU.
- Unlimited Speeds and Downloads — Download as much as you want as fast as your Internet connection will allow with the Pure XXL plan.
- Accepts Crypto — Get the added security of paying for your subscription with Bitcoin rather than a credit card.
Rating
|
4 out of 5 |
| Retention | 4,100 days in all binary and text newsgroups |
|
Security
|
SSL |
| Discount | 20% savings |
|
Price
|
€5,97/mo |
Usenet Search?
|
No |
Pure Usenet made its name by offering competitive pricing compared to its rivals while providing good retention, unlimited data transfer, and accepting a variety of payment methods for users around the world. However, that low price comes at the cost of fewer features and cut-backs on essential items.
Here is our analysis of PureUsenet’s service performance metrics.
Retention
| Retention Length | 4,100 Days |
Binary and Text Retention
|
Access to over 120,000 newsgroups. |
Retention rate is an important factor when choosing your provider, as it will ultimately dictate how long a file will be accessible on a server.
Pure Usenet offers a consistent 4,100 days of retention across all available plans. 11 years is a respectable retention rate, but lower than our top rated providers, which have at least 33% more retention. It is, nonetheless, a good effort considering that many competitors carry 1,100 days or less.
Performance
Pure Usenet has several speed capped plans. For our tests, we used the Pure XXL plan, which offers unlimited speed and data.
If your Internet service provider is on the slower side, choose one of the lower-tier plans. For example, if your broadband plan allows up to 50 Mbps download, then the Pure XL package, with a download speed of up to 60 Mbps, would be the right choice. Pure gives users plenty of options to match their Internet speeds and budget.
One of the tradeoffs with Pure Usenet is that it has fewer connections than other Usenet providers, starting at 8 and maxing out with 20. This might not make a difference with your ISP due to speed caps, but it’s something to consider.
Rare amongst budget providers, Pure Usenet’s top tier package offers unlimited downloads under €6 per month. We’re impressed with the way Pure Usenet has found a way to provide value to Users with their many plan options.
Privacy and Security
Pure Usenet offers SSL encryption in all of their subscription packages. SSL encrypts data moving from point A to point B, so the content of your downloads stays confidential and unknown to your service provider or anyone who may be snooping on your connection.
However, SSL does not protect the rest of your online activity, so you might want to consider a VPN if you don’t subscribe to one, which is unfortunately not offered with any Pure Usenet plans.
Pricing
Pure Usenet offers a good Usenet access value. For a yearly subscription, pick packages as low as €3,09/month and ranging up to €5,97/month for unlimited download speed.
If you don’t want to commit to a yearly subscription, opt for their month-to-month plans which are a little more expensive.
Bottom Line
Pure Usenet is a good way for newcomers to get involved in the Usenet community. It isn’t as powerful as many other providers, but offers flexible pricing plans with plenty of features to get started.
Getting started with Pure Usenet is incredibly easy. Look at their packages and sign up for a 7-day trial by clicking this link.
