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How Fast is your Broadband Service
In using the internet today, we are often visiting websites with rich media content. This means things like streaming music, streaming video, interactive gaming, or other bandwidth intensive applications. Broadband speed can therefore, have a dramatic impact upon our internet experience with these sites. Consider that at the bottom end of the range, a broadband speed of 256K will take as long as 3 minutes to download a typical five minute song. At the other extreme, an 8Mb broadband connection can transfer that same song instantaneously and deliver streaming video with television quality.
For discussion of broadband speeds we use either kilobits per second or Megabits per second as the standard units of measure. When discussing transfer rates one megabit per second, written as 1Mb, is 1000 times faster than one kilobit per second, written as 1K. This is different that the conversion rate used when discussing a computer’s storage capacity in which 1024 if the correct multiplier between Kb and Mb. Typically, broadband service is available at the following speeds listed from slowest to fastest: 256K, 512K, 1Mb, 2Mb, 4Mb, 6Mb, and 8Mb. Compare this to the 56K speed of standard dial up internet service.
When you choose a broadband supplier, you will also choose a connection speed. This will govern the maximum rate at which information is downloaded to your computer from the internet. Often the upload speed is different than a broadband supplier’s download speed. If you upload significant amounts of data to the internet, you may want to compare upload speeds as well, but for most internet users, this is not an important factor.
If you already have broadband internet service, you can check your actual broadband upload and download speeds by using a free broadband speed test. You will almost certainly find that your connection speed is considerably less than the maximum rate for which you signed up. You can also check the average actual connection speeds of various UK broadband suppliers to see who is the fastest as measured by Broadband.co.uk.
Connection speed is going to be most important to users who like to play graphic intensive online games such as Doom 3 or other games with immersive 3D environments. Games like online poker or Tetris, on the other hand, require relatively little bandwidth. If you frequently download large files, stream rich media content, or are an avid online gamer in the UK, then you may want to consider using an online service to compare broadband to locate the fastest connection speed that is available in your area.
If you’re not satisfied with your current broadband connection speed, and the comparison service shows that you could be doing better with another provider, it is quite easy to make the switch to a new broadband internet service provider. It can be done with a single phone call and a minute or two at the computer. For complete information on changing internet service providers, check out this handy three step guide.