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Alright, dial-up may have been slow, unreliable, expensive and impractical – but it was easy. When the Internet ‘caught on’ in the nineties and technology became cheap enough for the average consumer you had only had one option. One piece of hardware, one phone line and one way to connect. These days we can be thankful for all the amazing convenience broadband can offer. However, as technology increases at a faster rate than ever before, it’s easy to get left behind. What is cable, what is ADSL and why does it even matter?
What is ADSL – How does it Work
ADSL is the most popular service in the United Kingdom. It’s also the most widely available and the one with the most competition driving down service prices. ADSL stands for Asynchronous Digital Subscriber Line. What that means in English is that the download speed that a user receives is much faster than their upload speed. For example, the speed at which you can view websites or download files is usually at least three times faster than the speed which you can upload files to another net user or website.
Because it essentially uses phone lines to send the data, ADSL is a ‘distance sensitive’ technology. This is one of the biggest flaws with ADSL. As the physical length of the line increases, the speed decreases. When a line reaches a length of around 3.5 miles, the service simply doesn’t work. In practice, this means the further away your house is from the exchange, the slower your speeds. It’s made worse because simply looking on a map is no indication at all of the length and quality of your wire, which could travel in any direction once underground.
It’s not all bad news though. Despite the distance problem around 98% of the UK can receive some form of ADSL, even if it’s nowhere near as fast as advertised. New technologies like ADSL2+ are also increasing the speed of ADSL broadband to up to 24 Mbps, but this is dependent on your area and how many people have requested the service at your local exchange.
What is Cable Broadband – How does it Work
Cable can initially confuse people used to having a BT line, simply because when using cable the same line that runs your TV also runs the internet and phone services. Cable is just that – a fiber optic cable that allows consumers to enjoy telephone, television and internet access using one connection. It sounds good, but unfortunately Cable has far less coverage than ADSL, covering around half of the UK population.
Cable is installed from your street directly into your home. Unlike ADSL, distance has no affect on the speed, so you can be sure that the speed advertised on the ISPs website is roughly what you’ll get whether you live next to a telephone exchange or ten miles from one. Cable speeds still work like ADSL in some ways though. You always get a lot more download than upload speed, for example. Once the cable is run into your house it is generally installed into a set top box or a router. Although you can enjoy all your services on one cable there’s no obligation. You could use it as just an internet service while finding your TV package elsewhere, or vice versa.
ADSL – Who is it good for?
For many people, ADSL isn’t just the best choice – it’s the only choice. If you live in a rural area, chances are it’s the only type of connection you can receive. There are plenty of speed checkers out there that can do simple tests on your phone number and can give you an estimate of how fast your connection will be. Don’t forget, if you live far away you might end up paying the same money for a much slower connection than a friend who lives closer to the exchange.
Even if you can get cable, ADSL shouldn’t be ruled out. ADSL2+ provides speeds that rival everything except the most expensive cable offering and because there’s more competition, there’s more choice. You’ve got a better chance of finding that ‘special’ deal that suits your lifestyle and web usage. You can also change providers if you find your broadband company not living up to its promises.
ADSL technology is slowing improving, especially in populated areas. Access to higher speed ADSL2+ is also increasing. The future of rural broadband might lie in mobile internet rather than ADSL if recent government reports can be believed, but it’s going to be a few years before we see mobile internet technology implemented on a national scale.
Cable Broadband – Who is it good for?
Cable doesn’t offer any consumer choice or freedom except for choosing a predefined package. There’s only one company that provides cable in the UK — Virgin Media. You may see Virgin fighting with Sky for customers, but Sky is a joint satellite and ADSL service and not a cable provider. If you find yourself unhappy with Virign for any reason, you won’t be able to change.
For many people however, cable is an excellent choice. Having one line and one provider sorting the internet, TV and phone can save people both time and money. Virgin has a TV service that can rival Sky for quality, and currently offer the UKs fastest broadband in selected areas at speeds of up to 50 Mbps. They have quite strict limits on how much you can download a day though. Don’t think that you’ll be able to download constantly at the speeds advertised.
Like in any choice as a consumer, research and personal usage is the key. Neighbours, friends, colleagues and websites might all have an opinion on what type of broadband you should get, but it’s up to you to think about what is you need, what you can receive and what’s the best for you and your family. Whilst some people look for cheap broadband, others look for speed or limitless bandwidth.
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