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Dreamhost Review: Web Hosting Review |
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| For intermediate to advanced users; fast data transfer; green hosting; free domain privacy | |
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Dreamhost is unique among the web host services we've reviewed. It's a uniqueness that will be refreshing to advanced users, but frustrating for beginners or those that like a lot of bells and whistles. We can safely advise anyone who needs a lot of technical support, a fast online site-builder, or an easily-configured PayPal system to consider another option. If, however, you're an intermediate-to-advanced user who likes a clean, no-nonsense control panel, needs a few essential essential features like Wordpress, likes the idea of green hosting, and prefers a web host with attitude, read on.
At $9.95 a month for a year, Dreamhost is a bit more expensive than most, but that $9.95 buys you free domain privacy (something that can cost $10 or more with other web hosts) and lifetime domain registration. There are no set-up fees, but you can pay $9.95 a month for phone support (though it's a call-back system and you're limited to just three calls per month). Dreamhost is one of an increasing number of self-described green hosts, meaning they neutralize their carbon footprint by purchasing renewable energy, running more efficient servers, and a variety of other measures that they're happy to tell you about. Dreamhost has one of the few truly integrated add-on installation and management environments, which gives the whole experience a very cohesive feeling. Whereas installing a blog or photo gallery on other web hosts shuttles you off to a different user experience for the installation, Dreamhost handles it all inside the same interface. This makes it easy to see what applications you've installed, and remove them if necessary. Dreamhost's scores in our tests were surprisingly variable, not at all what we expected from a host that focuses so heavily on the quality of its hosting. The 99.83% uptime isn't necessarily terrible, only marginally below the 99.88% group average. It translates into 3 hours and 48 minutes of downtime over three months. Its response time was nearly average at .506 seconds. On the plus side, it handled our 77MB download test with great speed, taking an average of 49 seconds, much faster than the group average of 1 minute 47 seconds. We tried Dreamhost's one option for online site building, the complex and robust Drupal. While the themes are beautiful, the learning curve is steep. It's much more configurable than other site builders, but most users will not be up and running with it quickly. If, on the other hand, you plan on building a content-rich site, particularly one administered by a number of users, this is a good option. You have 97 days to evaluate Dreamhost and receive of your money back (minus $9.95 for the cost of the domain), an unusually long satisfaction guarantee period. However, after that period there is no pro-rated refund. As mentioned earlier, telephone support is not standard. Support issues are logged in an email-based trouble ticket system or resolved via chat. A ticket submitted at 1:42 was answered at 1:51. The chat-based support was also helpful. You can find answers to many questions in their support twiki and their forums, but Dreamhost is primarily meant for users who know their way around the basics of website maintenance. Dreamhost has built a loyal following among experienced web designers, and we recommend it to those who want a slick, no-nonsense web host. We'd like to see better reliability, though it'll be fine for most users. |
| Cheapest Plan: | $8.95/mo 2 years |
| 1 Year Plan: | $119.40/yr; $9.95/mo |
| $ Back Guarantee: | 97-day full refund, not prorated after; $10 domain charge |
| Domain: | Free for life |
| Support: | Email, Chat |
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