The internet connection type plays a big role in availability, speed potential and performance. Shopping for internet plans gets confusing fast -- especially if you aren't familiar with the different technologies being used to deliver the connection to your home.
Between fiber , fixed wireless, cable , DSL , satellite and 5G home internet plans, there's an awful lot to keep straight and if you don't understand the differences, you risk getting stuck with a connection that isn't as fast or reliable as you had wanted , or as affordable as you need. That's no good when there are long-term contracts potentially at play. This guide will walk you through the different types of internet connections that may be available in your area, how they work and what, if any, limitations you can expect from them.
Fiber-optic internet is arguably the best connection type, so we'll start there. Like the name suggests, fiber refers to an internet connection that comes to your home via fiber-optic cable, which uses pulses of light along thin strands -- or fibers -- of glass or plastic to transmit data.
These fiber-optic strands support speeds and reliability that are superior to other connection types. Fiber-optic can deliver download speeds as fast as 2 gigabits 2, megabits per second -- fast enough to download a two-hour movie in HD in less than a minute -- but you're likely to find max download speeds around 1,Mbps from most fiber-optic providers. Upload speeds, which are especially important when working and learning from home, are also significantly faster with fiber-optic service.
Availability is the only real disadvantage with fiber. Laying enough fiber-optic cables to connect entire cities and regions is a huge logistical challenge , and with lots of competition and red tape to cut through, it's been slow going for any of the major service providers to expand coverage to underserved areas. Fiber connections used to be fairly expensive as far as internet plans go, but most providers have lowered their prices in recent years.
As a result, fiber internet is now likely to be as competitively priced as any other connection type -- and considering the speeds you get for the price, it's actually now one of the most cost-effective internet types. No wonder everyone wants it. Cable internet delivers a connection to your home via copper coaxial cable -- the same as traditional cable TV. Cable internet lacks the full speed potential and reliability of fiber-optic service, but it's much more widely accessible.
That makes sense, because cable internet uses the same coaxial connections as cable TV. Coaxial cables do not have the same speed potential and reliability as fiber-optic ones, but cable internet is still one of the fastest internet types.
Wifi Hotspots are sites that offer Internet access over a wireless local area network WLAN by way of a router that then connects to an Internet service provider. Hotspots utilize WiFi technology, which allows electronic devices to connect to the Internet or exchange data wirelessly through radio waves. Hotspots can be phone-based or free-standing, commercial or free to the public.
Dial-up connections require users to link their phone line to a computer in order to access the Internet. This particular type of connection—also referred to as analog—does not permit users to make or receive phone calls through their home phone service while using the Internet.
Now more outdated, a dial-up connection used to be among the most common Internet connection type. This high-speed Internet connection is provided through either cable or telephone companies. One of the fastest options available, broadband Internet uses multiple data channels to send large quantities of information.
The term broadband is shorthand for broad bandwidth. Broadband Internet connections such as DSL and cable are considered high-bandwidth connections. Speeds are comparable to DSL. Just as satellites orbiting the earth provide necessary links for telephone and television service, they can also provide links for broadband.
Satellite broadband is another form of wireless broadband, and is also useful for serving remote or sparsely populated areas. Typically a consumer can expect to receive download at a speed of about Kbps and send upload at a speed of about 80 Kbps. These speeds may be slower than DSL and cable modem, but they are about 10 times faster than the download speed with dial-up Internet access.
Service can be disrupted in extreme weather conditions. BPL is the delivery of broadband over the existing low- and medium-voltage electric power distribution network. BPL can be provided to homes using existing electrical connections and outlets. BPL is an emerging technology that is available in very limited areas.
It has significant potential because power lines are installed virtually everywhere, alleviating the need to build new broadband facilities for every customer. Digital Subscriber Line DSL DSL is a wireline transmission technology that transmits data faster over traditional copper telephone lines already installed to homes and businesses.
ADSL typically provides faster speed in the downstream direction than the upstream direction. Use of dial-up requires a separate phone line, since users must connect via the telephone to their Internet service provider. Speeds max out at about 56Kbps, which is only about a tenth of the speed of even the slowest broadband connections.
Dial-up use is only recommended when no other option is available. Ed Oswald is a freelance writer whose work appears on several technology sites as well as on Demand Studios. He has been writing since and graduated with a degree in Journalism from Temple University. By Ed Oswald. Fiber Fiber is the fastest way to access the Internet, but it's also the most expensive.
Cable Cable Internet connections use coaxial lines run by cable companies to offer Internet access to their consumers.
0コメント