A Small Orange vs Akamai Cloud

A Small Orange launched in 2003 and became known for offering simple hosting plans designed for both beginners and growing businesses. They provided shared, VPS, reseller, and dedicated hosting, giving users flexible options based on site size and performance needs. Their shared hosting plans stood out for including cPanel, SSD storage, unlimited email accounts, and Weebly’s drag-and-drop builder, which helped users create and manage websites without technical experience. WordPress-optimized servers, one-click installs, and a wide app marketplace added convenience for personal and business sites. Security features were solid, with password-protected directories, spam filtering, hotlink protection, and daily backups included across plans. Developers also had access to multiple coding languages, MySQL databases, and custom error page tools. Customer support was available through 24/7 live chat and email, though some users found responses brief and missed having phone support. Pricing tended to run higher than many competitors, and users needed to buy SSL certificates separately, which increased total costs. While A Small Orange is no longer active, their review offers context for what customers valued and where the service fell short. Readers can use these insights to compare today’s hosting providers and choose an option that matches their budget and website goals.

Founded in 2003 and based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Akamai Technologies (formerly Linode) is a well known name in cloud hosting for developers and businesses. They focus on delivering reliable infrastructure, straightforward pricing, and flexible configuration options. Their platform runs on AMD EPYC processors with NVMe SSD storage, offering fast speeds and consistent performance. Users can choose from several plan types, including Shared CPU, Dedicated CPU, High Memory, GPU, and Premium plans. Pricing begins at $5 per month for the 1GB Nanode plan and scales up to advanced GPU setups with 8 vCPUs, 32 GB of RAM, and NVIDIA Quadro RTX 6000 hardware. This flexibility allows teams to match their resources to project requirements without overpaying. They also provide private networking with VPC, built-in firewalls, and load balancing to support secure and scalable deployments. Multiple management tools, like Cloud Manager, CLI, and API, offer flexibility for different skill levels. 24/7 support and an active community forum enhance the customer experience, helping users solve issues quickly. Combined with Akamai’s global edge network, these features make them a dependable option for projects of all sizes.