In today's world ISPs (Internet Service Providers) such as AT&T, Verizon, Lumen, Windstream, Cox, and Comcast all have different names for their products. And these names that differ by company relate to a class of internet connectivity like DSL, or Shared/Cable Connection, Shared Fiber connections and Dedicated Internet Connections. So while the names differ per company let's dig into what each of these categories are and how they work.
First is DSL (Digital Subscriber Line), while it was developed in the 90s to provide clients a higher speed option than dial up 56K connections (Remember AOL you got mail!) it is a service we see fairly often in more rural markets still here in 2023. This copper connection typically sees a shared capacity or best effort throughput (speed) of 8 to 12 Mbps on the download and up to 1 Mbps Upload capacity. To put this in a frame of reference this would not be enough bandwidth to support any HD video connection according to Zoom . This is not an ideal connection for most applications except businesses that require very low bandwidth to operate. But even then this would be difficult as most businesses embrace security systems that having streaming requirements. Also due to aging copper infrastructure that has probably been in use since the 90s this not the best option.
Next is what most of us call Cable Internet or Coax based business internet. This is another shared connection meaning there is bandwidth brought into a neighborhood and then usually heavily oversubscribed to lower monthly costs. Some carriers will call these hybrid saying that they are fiber as well, but in reality that is fiber to feed the neighborhood and then all Coax Copper cabling for their to residences or businesses. This technology is still developing and with new standards like DOCSIS 4.1 so it can handle many business from a bandwidth (speed) standpoint. However, it is worth noting that much of the coax/copper infrastructure is aging and treated with an reactive approach, so reliability is a major concern with these type of connections and since they are lower costs, they are treated as lower priority by most carriers. This is a great option mostly if the only options available are Satellite and DSL, we also prefer this as a backup or redundant connections due to the low price point.
Shared Fiber Connections are becoming the main stream in most cities of any size across America whether it Verizon Fios, AT&T Fiber Internet or a Regional/Local Provider these connections offer reliability as the infrastructure is newer and less fault tolerant than Copper iterations. Also bandwidth wise tend to offer symmetrical bandwidth capacity such as 100 Mbps download and 100 Mbps upload, whereas Cable internet will offer a 100 Mbps download but only able to support 10 Mbps upload. So the ability to work with more bandwidth at once prevents slowdowns. Also the light that fiber optics uses is a much faster way in general to transmit data, and creates lower latency times. This connection is ideal for most smaller clients due to budget, performance and good reliability. Keep in mind that this is an oversubscribed service as well and bandwidth and reliability are not guaranteed and bandwidth can fluctuate due to capacity limits in your neighborhood.
Last we will review Dedicated Internet Connectivity, This connectivity is exactly how sounds dedicated directly to the end user. This was the previous allure with t1's and other older technology that a company could have bandwidth specifically dedicated to them and providers typically build in enterprise equipment that provides a 99.99% uptime guarantee with most carriers. Today we use fiber to provide this type of connectivity and the bandwidth capacity is only limited by budget mostly. Think of the shared connections like the public highway, at rush-hour everyone's traffic gets on the same highway and whether it is 1 or 10 lanes and once it is full everything slows down (congested). With a dedicated connection you have a toll road all to yourself which can be quickly expanded as needed. Because of this any size business that loses significant money due to internet downtime this is the correct connection. Whether a hospital or busy restaurant chain this solution combines all the best elements of a connection but can be cost prohibitive for some clients.
With that said we want to come up with a right sized solution for your business needs and budget. Call us at 405-757-8708 to set up a free estimate.
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