Need opinion on Online Broker

Hi all, I'd like to ask you all about the opinion on online brokers. Which one is the best to suit a beginner? Charles Schwad is my first choice. I know the commission is high at first, but it'd be reduced once I've done enough trade. Couple of my friends use Datek for its cheap commission fee but I'd like to get as much resources as possible so I can learn. All suggestions are welcome. Thanks. __________________ i work for a broker dealer, so my opinion is biased, but if you're still interested. email me at roniman@dotplanet.com __________________ isnt' it Charles Schwab???? __________________ First off, yes it is Charles Schwab. Secondly to answer your question dodo90024. I currently use Datek and love it. Commision is a one time fee of $9.99 for each trade or sell. This is one of the cheapest for online brokerages. There is no other fees or annual membership fees. The only weakness with Datek is, if you don't know what you're doing, they don't offer much information in research wise like the bigger hitters like Etrade. But they get the job done fast. Charles Schwab would be good if you want someone to hold your hand throughout the whole process. But if you have an idea what you want to invest in, and don't need much resources in research of stocks, go with Datek. They get the job done fast. __________________ If you want cheap, I have had good experiences with Ameritrade. I absolutely abhor Etrade. __________________ I've used Etrade, Charles Schwab, and DLJdirect..but I've only had trading with etrade and schwab...etrade sucks and schwab isn't bad except for the high rate. My dad is a day trader and he likes Ameritrade and Datek. __________________ How about their internet traffic? 'cause sometimes you can't place an order due to the high volumn of people online. And about their servers stability, some said Charles Schwab's servers crash often compared with other brokers. __________________ I haven't had those kinds of traffic problems with datek. __________________ Quote: Originally posted by dodo90024 How about their internet traffic? 'cause sometimes you can't place an order due to the high volumn of people online. And about their servers stability, some said Charles Schwab's servers crash often compared with other brokers. Etrade has tons of problems with internet traffic. Nothing pisses you off more than you trying to submit an order and getting a page error. I have had no such errors with Ameritrade. __________________ I know Datek has this guarantee to execute within 30 or 60 seconds or else the commission is free. Does anyone use Charles Schwab? __________________ I use schwab...no complaints except for the high price. __________________ Can datek support trades via wireless pdas? __________________ I currently use Datek but finds that it doesn't have the feature I'm looking for. When I view my portfolio, it only shows the current price and the day's gain. It DOESN'T show my buy price. I have to dig for it. Does anybody know of a web brokerage that gives easy access to your buy price? __________________ Schwab is reliable and fast. They currently have a supercomputer center that uses the IBM SP PC604e 332 MHz with 2000 processors, with an Rmax score of 547. Meaning? It's the 19th most powerful supercomputer in the world, more powerful than most nations have (US, Germany, Japan, and the UK are the only nations with more powerful centers). Kinda impressive. Good information, good reliability, good speed, and good stable company. Trades are expensive though, so it seems to be more conductive to "long term, buy and hold" type investors. __________________ I've been using Schwab for awhile. No complaint about it. __________________ If you're serious and have a large amount to play with, use the big boys - MSDW, Waterhouse, or Schwab. If you only got a little and you want to manipulate it quickly into something big, use Datek and Etrade IPOs. The best stock for me this year has been the 50 shares of Handspring IPO I got for $16 which is now running about $90 hehe. Of course all these profits go to pay off the money I'm losing on all my other stocks. I pretty much figure Earthlink to go belly-up some time soon - stupid company has no respect for it's shareholders, and AOL - damn! More concerned with going after Microsoft than it is with brokering a good takeover. They are still paying way too much for TW. Even my heavily undervalued stocks are eating it. Look at Intel, Cypress Conductors, and Symantec for companies that have was low PEs considering their growth rate.