Wi-fi service provider in the UK

Hi,
I'll be in the UK and Ireland later this month and would like to be able to
access my e-mail whilst I'm on the road.

I've identified BT OpenZone and T-Mobile as two candidates, but both have
their issues (eg: BT doesn't have a casual/drop-in plan, unless you want to
use your time in the next 24 hours following your first log-in - which is
useless if I'm there for a month. T-mobile only seem to be in StarBucks, but
at least have a proper casual plan without this stupid 24 hour condition).

Before I try to sign up, can someone please recommend a service provider
that will basically allow me to connect casually (eg: buy an hour of air
time that I can use part thereof at any time whilst I'm there - I have a
plan like that here in Australia and it's very convenient) and has
reasonable coverage (I'll be mostly in city areas such as London, Edinburgh
and Dublin).

Thanks in advance,
Pete

"Pete" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:3f53a00d$0$4192$(E-Mail Removed) ...
> Hi,
> I'll be in the UK and Ireland later this month and would like to be able
to
> access my e-mail whilst I'm on the road.
>
> I've identified BT OpenZone and T-Mobile as two candidates, but both have
> their issues (eg: BT doesn't have a casual/drop-in plan, unless you want
to
> use your time in the next 24 hours following your first log-in - which is
> useless if I'm there for a month. T-mobile only seem to be in StarBucks,
but
> at least have a proper casual plan without this stupid 24 hour condition).
>
> Before I try to sign up, can someone please recommend a service provider
> that will basically allow me to connect casually (eg: buy an hour of air
> time that I can use part thereof at any time whilst I'm there - I have a
> plan like that here in Australia and it's very convenient) and has
> reasonable coverage (I'll be mostly in city areas such as London,
Edinburgh
> and Dublin).

In the City of London (financial district), lots of people go into Starbucks
and use their wireless access without feeling they have to buy coffee etc
and the staff don't mind. It's actually very good for casual access and
their pricing isn't too bad compared to other options available. The
connection is a 1Mbps down / 256kbps up BT ADSL setup. As someone who's
used it through work, I'd definitely recommend it. Their "drop-in user"
plan at GBP 14 for 120 minutes over 31 days might be just what you need.