Dsl Vs. High Speed Cable Internet: The Best Comparisons

Internet technology has come a long way since dial up. Current options for the average Internet consumer boast speeds that make old fashioned dial up look laughable. Compare the formerly "speedy" service provided by a 56k modem (that is 56 kilobytes per second, remember), and that offered now by DSL service with speeds of roughly 1.5 Mbps (megabytes per second) or cable providers which operate at around 5 Mbps and up and you will see that options for internet consumers today are amazing and getting consistently better.

Both DSL and Cable Internet are fast by typical dial up Internet standards. Neither will leave you hanging while you wait for a streaming video to buffer, or music to download. The main difference between DSL and Cable Internet service is the method through which the service is provided to your home office, which affect both services relative speeds.

Without getting too tech specific, one basic disadvantage of using DSL service instead of cable Internet is that DSL Internet must travel over a standard copper phone line (again, this is a really low tech explanation). This should not hamper service if you are located near the phone companies central office, but the further your home or office is from your phone service provider, you may not be within the service area, or you may experience delays as information is transmitted from your home to the central office and back. DSL services are always provided by your local phone company and availability can change from city to city.

Cable Internets service relies on existing coaxial cable to provide service to your home office, and although the speeds of your cable connection are much faster than those provided by DSL, since the connection is shared with other cable consumers, occasionally your cable internet service might experience slightly slower speeds during peak usage hours. For average consumers, these slower speeds are negligible, especially considering how fast the service is to begin with, because like most other cable Internet services, cable Internet offers users speeds of roughly 5mgbs optimum service.

Another advantage that cable boasts over traditional DSL are a number of bundled high speed deals that companies provide in tandem with their cable TV and phone options. You can often purchase digital phone service along with services like high speed Internet and cable TV for a pretty cheap price compared to DSL Internet though this varies depending on your local phone company.

No matter which option you select for your internet provider, the differences at the consumer level between DSL and cable internet are fairly minimal, with cable services like Cable Internet beating DSL with higher offered speeds and availability, and occasionally better high speed deals.

In any case, it has never been better to be a high speed consumer.