Which Internet Service Is Faster: DSL or Cable?
Digital subscriber lines, an Internet connection technology where high bandwidth is delivered over telephone lines, typically provides from 128 kilobits per second to 1.5 megabits per second connection speeds. Cable connections are much faster, although not as fast as the 30 mbps, which the technology theoretically can support.
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Types
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DSL theoretically can provide up to 3 mbps or even 6 mbps in certain cases, but usually is limited to about 1.5 mbps, and that typically is only for downloading. Providers often advertise a service combining two speeds, with 128 kbps for uploading. They assume almost all customers will spend most of their online time in downloading activity, such as Web browsing, saving files or programs to their computer, or receiving email. Uploading consists of activities such as sending photos to websites, putting published documents onto a Web portfolio or receiving email.
Geography
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Actual DSL speed often is much slower than the advertised speed due to several reasons. Phone line quality may not support that rate of speed, and line noise is created by various elements as well. Filters sent with the DSL equipment connect to phone jacks and lessen the noise.
DSL speed decreases significantly the farther away the residential modem is from the nearest telephone company hub.
In addition, high traffic times crowd bandwidth and slow down the service. -
Features
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Cable service has similar issues. Cable usually is noticeably faster than DSL, with customers typically receiving between 1 and 7 mbps for downloading, and between 128 and 768 kbps for uploading. Some areas, however, will regularly see speeds of 8 mbps, and sometimes as high as 11 mbps. Gaming and streaming media, particularly video, work significantly better with cable than with DSL.
As with DSL, cable service slows when there is high Internet traffic in the subscriber's particular area at any given time.
Effects
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Many DSL and cable providers place speed caps on residential service in order to increase their customer base by providing bandwidth to more people and avoiding overloading. People also call these limits "bandwidth caps," but a bandwidth cap actually is when a provider limits a certain amount of bandwidth per month per user.
Expert Insight
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The Consumer Electronics Association reported in 2006 that cable subscribers in the United States were more likely to be happy with their Internet speed than DSL users, but that DSL users reported more satisfaction overall, apparently a result of price. About 26 percent of cable users were satisfied with the price of their service, compared with 46 percent of DSL users.
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