Broadband………We all use it and quite frankly, rely on it, whether that is for Commercial or Home use. However, as like myself, you will have noticed that sometimes the websites you visit and the videos you watch don’t render as fast as they did yesterday; and at that point you would end up getting agitated or shouting at your computer.
But why does this happen? Is my PC not good enough? Am I infected with malware? Is something wrong with my router? You will be glad to know that none of these are the culprits.
It all comes down to the speed of your connection, or broadband speed. This can be determined with a variety of factors
- Type of connection cable (ADSL1, ADSL2+, Fibre Optic)
- Distance from the exchange
- Which provider you are with
- How much your are paying
So as you can see, broadband speed is not so simple to determine.
Type Of Connection
Here is a little lesson in how your broadband is delivered to you.
Before broadband you would need to use a form of connection called dial-up, which meant you had to use your own telephone line in order to connect to the internet.
Below is the classic sound that you would hear when connecting through dial-up.
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However there are a few problems with dial-up, firstly it is really slow and it also renders your telephone “out of use”. Yes, you heard right. If you use dial-up for your internet then don’t be expecting any calls while your surfing the web.
However these problems were solved through the release of broadband. Instead of using your telephone line, broadband reached your home through a copper cable called ADSL.
ADSL1 was the first release which allowed for more data to be transmitted through copper cables, compared to a modem (dial-up), and it also allowed for speeds of up to 7 Mb/s.
ADSL2+ was the second release which, in my opinion was a huge improvement, allowed for speed of up to 25 Mb/s.
Fibre optic is a new technology that allows for lightning fast broadband speeds of 90+ Mb/s. However, installing the cable needed for fibre optic broadband costs a lot of money and as a result, the majority of people are unable to use this technology.
Distance From Exchange
Although ADSL was a revolutionary technology there was a flaw. Depending on the distance between your home and the exchange centre (your ISP distribution area) would depend on how fast (Mb/s) your broadband would run at.
Therefore if, like me, you live in a rural area, then don’t be expecting any high end speeds any time soon.
Which ISP You Are With
Common sense really, although every ISP company offers the same features, the speed in which they can deliver their internet to you are different. But why?
As I said before exchanges are like a distribution centre and depending on who’s exchange is closest to you will ultimately depend on what speeds you are able to receive.
Therefore although you may see adverts from ISP companies saying they can offer speeds of up-to 20 Mb/s that does not mean everyone signed onto that particular ISP company will receive the 20 Mb/s speeds.
How Much You Are Paying
Like everything, you pay for what you get and broadband speeds are no different. Each ISP company will have different packages which I am sure you are aware of and each one of those packages cost a different amount and thus the better the package the better the speed, and also the more money that is required to be paid out.
Conclusion
Broadband is a complex technology that is consistently improving and growing. Despite the problems with speed, broadband is one of the biggest hubs around and with one of (if not) the largest community of networks.
If you think about it, for all the ISP’s there are each one owns an individual hub, and for each one of their customers that are signed up, that means one more link/connection going to their hub thus making their hub bigger.
In simple terms the higher speeds ISP’s are able to provide their customers the more customers that will potentially sign up therefore making that ISP’s hub bigger.
Something To Think About
What speeds are you achieving?
Are you still using dial-up?
Will broadband speeds become more consistent throughout all parts of the country?