Internet & Computer Guide for Germany, Europe

Getting on the Internet in Austria,
Germany or Switzerland

The biggest difference between internet access in Europe and in North America used to be that local calls were charged by the minute in Europe. But far fewer internet users have a local dial-up connection for which they pay for each minute online, as in the “old days.” Most people in Germany now have flat-rate high-speed DSL, and German telecom charges have generally come down in recent years.

A German computer keyboard (Tastatur) is QWERTZ rather than QWERTY. And where’s that darn @ key? See link on right > PHOTO © Hyde Flippo

Wi-Fi and High-Speed Access in Germany
Wi-Fi (called W-LAN in German) internet access in Germany and Europe is increasingly widespread. Most German business hotels offer Ethernet or Wi-Fi high-speed internet access for either an hourly or a daily charge. For example, the last time I was there, the Kempinski Airport Hotel in Munich charged 20 euros per 24-hour period for unlimited access via its Ethernet (room) or wi-fi (lobby) connections. But a hotel in Munich offered free internet access in its rooms, something fairly rare in Germany. Smaller hotels and pensions are more problematic. Sometimes there are problems even getting a dial-up connection (hard-wiring, different jacks, etc.) It’s wise to ask before booking if you will need internet access from your hotel.

See more about Wi-Fi and hotspots below.

ISPs in Germany

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the content of external internet sites.

Internet Service Providers in Germany
The largest German internet service provider is Deutsche Telekom’s T-Online. There are also hundreds of local and regional ISPs in Germany, such as gmx.net, snafu.de, or Web.de (DSL).

T-Online (Deutsche Telekom)
T-Online is the online service of Deutsche Telekom and, like AOL or MSN, offers its own content as well as internet and Web access. See the T-Online Web site (in German) for current information.

AOL Germany
AOL members in Germany can access AOL via the country-wide number 0-19-14 from anywhere in Germany at the local phone rate, with dialup. Broadband (DSL) connections are also available. > AOL Deutschland

Local and Regional ISPs
Austria, Germany, and Switzerland have all gotten into the internet and the Web in a big way. In addition to the “big three” above, each country has an array of local internet service providers (ISPs) that offer a variety of services, including email, home pages, and Web site hosting. Examples are A1 in Austria and snafu.de in Germany.

Wi-Fi Locations

In German, Wi-Fi is called W-LAN or Wlan (pron. vay-lahn, for “wireless local area network”). In 2009, the Berlin government planned to offer free Wi-Fi in the central parts of the city, but — like similar plans around the world — that plan never got off the ground in Germany’s largest city.

But there are many locations all over Germany with Wi-Fi hotspots (free or paid). According to one website, there are over 400 free Wi-Fi locations in Berlin alone, mostly at cafes, restaurants and hotels. The most common commercial Wi-Fi service in Germany is the T-Mobile HotSpot Network. (See T-Mobile: HotSpots in Germany - alphabetical city list of locations). Just in Berlin there are over 100 locations, including the airport, Starbucks, most McDonald’s, the Sony Center at Potsdamer Platz, and many hotels and restaurants. If you are a T-Mobile USA customer, you can sign up for the HotSpot service, but US customers may be subject to an 18-cents-per-minute or a flat per-day roaming charge in Europe and at some international airports. But you can buy a prepaid pass online for such services that may save you money. Contact T-Mobile for details an current information.

Security Concerns
Just as in the US or anywhere, when using public Wi-Fi locations, you should be careful about online security. Wi-Fi service in public locations is not always safe from password or identity theft. Use common sense when using Wi-Fi in Europe. For instance, avoid doing online banking at a public location.

Cybercafés • Internet Cafés

Austria, Germany, and Switzerland all have many Internet cafes in cities and towns across the land. With the widespread availability of Wi-Fi in traditional cafes and restaurants, the distinction between an Internet and a regular cafe is blurring, but an Internet cafe offers computer terminals, while most traditional cafes offer only wireless Internet access for your own laptop or smartphone.

Web cafe access rates can vary considerably, but range from free (for paying customers) to as little as 50 eurocents per half hour to three euros per hour, depending on the location and the services offered. In large cities, there is an Internet cafe on almost every corner in high-traffic areas. Many serve food and drink, while others are just a room full of computers with a snack or beverage vending machine.

Web-based Email
With the advent of smartphones, the iPad, the iPhone and the “cybercafe,” it is now possible to stay online while traveling without a computer. Business people and others have bought into the universal access offered by having a web-based email account with Gmail (googlemail.com in Germany), MSN’s Hotmail, Yahoo! Mail, or some other free Web email service. Many firms also provide web-based email for their employees. They can go into a web cafe (or use a friend’s computer) to access their email and surf the web at a Wi-Fi hotspot. Of course, a web cafe doesn’t offer this service for free, but the cost is usually very reasonable.

Mail2Web.com (free) or your own ISP’s web mail allows you to check your email account on the go. It’s a fast and easy way to access any mail box from any web browser anywhere you have internet access.

Modem Tips

Germany was one of the few countries in the world that once required modem users to register their dial-up modems with the telephone company. Because the law was widedly ignored – even by usually law-abiding Germans – and because the law was stupid, it’s no longer necessary to register your modem in Germany. But other problems persist for North Americans used to the standard RJ-11 phone plug and free local phone calls. However, RJ-11 phone plug converters can now be bought in Germany. Just go to a department store or telephone shop (anywhere mobile phones are sold) and ask for a connection cable with the RJ-11 connector for your laptop/notebook modem on one end, and the German connector on the other.

Hard-wired connections and different dial tones are only two of those problems. I highly recommend a phone line tester that comes with plug adapters. It could save your computer! Thankfully, as DSL replaces dial-up, this is less of a problem.

NEXT > Cell Phone Tips

MORE > The iPhone in Germany

Web content ©1997-2013 Hyde Flippo

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• Expats Page - Learn from those who have already been there and done that.

Related Web Links

NOTE: The German-Way and More is not responsible for
the content of external internet sites.

• AOL Germany (in German)
• MSN Deutschland (in German)
• T-Home - Deutsche Telekom (in English or German) - DSL and other internet services
• T-Online is Deutsche Telekom's internet service. (in German)

Internet / Web Cafés

NOTE: We are not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

• NOTE: We have recently deleted our links to several cyber/web cafe directories because most of the links they provided were out-of-date or non-functioning. The links below have been verified recently. Also try a search at google.de or google.com for "internet cafe" + city.
• M@c Beam - das freundliche Internetcafé on Frankfurter Allee in Berlin-Friedrichshain (U5 Samariterstr.)
• Cafe Einstein in Vienna, Austria (Rathausplatz 4). Also in English. In addition to the food and drink, free Wi-Fi and free electrical outlets. They even have a non-smoking section! See their app for iOS and Android.
• Cafe Stein in Vienna - free Wi-Fi (WLAN)

NEXT > Cell Phone Tips