A Complete Guide to Broadband Speed

When we’re looking to get broadband one of the most important considerations is always what Internet speed we are going to be able to achieve. Buying a package is not an insignificant expense, so we want to know that we’re going to be able to do the activities that we want to do.

This article will look through the different speeds obtainable through ADSL, fiber optic broadband, and mobile broadband, and also some of the limiting factors in connection speeds.

ADSL Broadband

ADSL broadband is passed over the copper cables of the BT phone network. Copper cables are not the best for carrying Internet signal. Speed degrades over distance, causing the resulting speed in the home to be slower than it could possibly be. The further you are from the telephone exchange, the more loss of speed you will receive. If you’re just around the corner from the telephone exchange, you’ll get decent speeds on just about any package. If you live rurally, then you may struggle to get connectivity that’s good enough to stream movies or play multiplayer online games.

ADSL2 and ADSL2+

The top speeds with ADSL tend to be around 8mbps and in reality, speeds are much lower. New ADSL technologies have emerged in the form of ADSL2 and ADSL2+. These increase the bandwidth, with ADSL2 offering twice the speed of standard ADSL and ADSL2+ around three times the speed. These technologies still rely on the copper cables of the BT network and so speeds can suffer if you live a long way from a telephone exchange. But with ADSL2+ offering speeds of up to 20mbps, you can expect some pretty high velocity. If looking to get ADSL, then you should speak to some providers and say what broadband speed can I get from my line. They will give you a decent idea of the level of connectivity you are likely to receive.

Fiber Optic Broadband

If you’re looking for the fastest type of broadband then this is certainly for you. Fiber optic broadband is passed through plastic and glass cable that is specifically designed for high speed transfer of Internet data. Therefore, there is no loss of speed as the data travels down the cables, or very little anyway. Therefore, the speed that you get in your home should be roughly the speed that is advertised. With Virgin Media, customers tend to get around 90-95 percent of their advertised speed. Often with ADSL, you will only receive around 50 percent, so this is a marked improvement. There are two types of fiber broadband:

·         Fibre to the Home

·         Fibre to the Cabinet

Fibre to the Home

With Fibre to the Home, you are likely to get much faster speeds than Fibre to the Cabinet. The fiber optic cables actually enter your building, and therefore, there is no loss of speed at any stage.

Fibre to the Cabinet

With Fibre to the Cabinet, the last leg of the journey from the cabinet at street-level to your home is over copper cables. Therefore, there is some loss of speed over these last few metres. If you are a long way from the cabinet, you will receive all loss of signal.

Mobile Broadband

Many people ask themselves “What broadband speed can I get on my mobile phone or tablet?” We want to be connected on the go and we want to stay entertained as well. Watching Youtube requires a certain level of Internet connectivity and with the advent of online TV, nowadays, it’s more possible to do more things as we move around.

Mobile broadband has just entered the fourth generation of its technology. 3G connectivity have maximum speeds of around 1.4mbps, with actual speeds around 0.6mbps. Although great for downloading email and surfing the web, this is not always enough for streaming and high intensity activities. EE Broadband was the first company to bring out 4G and they now have the connectivity rolled out to around 50% of the country.

With other mobile operators such as O2, Three Mobile, and Vodafone rolling out as we speak, there are exciting times ahead for mobile broadband customers as Internet connectivity gets faster and faster. The fourth generation is around 10 times faster than 3G, and therefore, with average speeds of around 5-7mbps, it’s possible to do just about anything that you could on your home broadband. Streaming movies, playing games, and downloading large files, becomes easier than ever before, and now there’s the possibility of using cloud storage without having to wait for files to upload and download.

What Broadband Speed Can I Get Actually?

The actual speed that you’re likely to receive will be dependent on a number of factors. If you’re on a fixed line broadband of course, the distance from the cabinet or from the exchange will be a limiting factor. In addition, the setup in your house and the wiring in your house could cause bottlenecks that decrease the potential speed of the connection. Something as simple as a router that cannot handle the capacity for super-fast broadband may cause you to experience slower connections than you would otherwise receive. With mobile broadband, the most limiting factor is your coverage. If you’re in an area with poor signal where you can only receive 2G, then you’re not going to get fast broadband speeds. With 99% of the UK able to get 3G, you should be able to receive around 0.2 to 0.7mbps in most locations. However, if you’re inside rather than outside, you may struggle to get connectivity. And similarly, if you’re on a particularly remote place, the signals may struggle to get to you. With fourth generation of mobile broadband, there is going to be better indoor connectivity and more possibilities of higher speeds.

Top Tip

When you’re looking to get broadband, it’s always important to find out the speeds that you can actually achieve are not go off advertised rates. Advertisements normally quote speeds that are available to around 10 percent of the consumer base of the provider. Chances are, you’ll fall in the 90 percent that cannot receive those speeds. With mobile broadband, do post code checkers to find the coverage in the areas that you want to use your connection.

With ADSL and fiber broadband, do a post code check on one of the many comparison sites to find out what connection speeds people are obtaining in your neighbourhood. These tests provide useful maps so you can see exactly which providers are performing in which locations. It’s also a good idea to speak to relatives, friends, and colleagues that live near you so that you can find out what connection speeds they are getting through their providers and can decide what level of value different Internet service providers will be able to provide you. If you’re an intensive user, then it’s worth the time invested in finding out more about how good the Internet is from different providers in your area.

Sam Jones had the same answer anytime someone asked him 'What broadband speed can I get?'.  He simply pointed them in the direction of sites such as uSwitch so they could compare different packages at a glance.