Consumers want faster internet speeds, and they want broadband capabilities like streaming video and data transfer. Consumers know that the basic choices for obtaining this kind of bandwidth in their households are down to DSL and Cable internet. But which to choose? Which is truly faster?
DSL Internet Basics
DSL stands for "digital subscriber line" and refers to broadband internet that travels over high-density telephone lines. Because the local telephone company has existing infrastructure and right of ways in most communities, this is often the less expensive option.
DSL does slow down the farther the home sits from the physical location of the servers, or hub, that provides the internet for the local area. So, if a house is more than 5 miles from the hub, the consumers living there will see that DSL is distinctly slower than Cable.
On the other hand, DSL bandwidth does not suffer when there are multiple users sharing the same network. This means that even if many households and small businesses in the area share the same DSL hub, there is no impact on the service.
Cable Internet Basics
Cable internet runs on the same cables used to install cable television. Often, the cable providers have access to install this sort of technology quickly and easily.
Cable slows down distinctly when there are multiple users on the line at the same time. This means that in population-dense areas where many households and businesses are on the internet during the same hours, users will see slower internet access and data streaming times.
However, Cable internet does not slow down over long distances. So, regardless of how far away a home is from the location of the central technology, users will see a faster service.
Consumer Considerations - Rural vs. Urban Living
It does take a little bit of research to discover the location of the DSL data center and to determine the distance between the service location and the hub. However, this is key information in choosing between the two technology providers.
Generally speaking, if a home is located in a densely populated urban area, it is very likely that the DSL hub is close by. It is also more likely that many users will be accessing the internet at the same time in such areas. Though there are exceptions to this rule of thumb, urban users see faster internet speeds from DSL than they do cable internet.
Likewise, a home that is located in a sparsely populated more rural location will not have to share the bandwidth with too many users or businesses, and is less likely to be located near a DSL hub. Again, while this is no hard and fast rule, it is generally the case that rural households benefit from cable internet access over DSL.
This being said, those households located in suburban or mixed metropolitan households may see very little difference between the download and access speeds available via DSL or Cable broadband. At this point, customer service, bundled packages, and overall cost might become better determining factors in this decision.
Internet Access Rights and Rural Communities
One problem with the above is when only one of these options is available. In many very rural communities, the cable companies do not run cables out far enough to access low numbers of homes. These families access television via satellite, and do not have the option of traditional cable lines.
While telephone lines run to these communities, it's likely that the DSL hub is very far away from the location of the community, meaning that the speed degradation may result in internet download speeds as slow as dial-up! This is one of the conundrums of the modern age in the USA, and presents an even greater problem in developing countries that do not have the infrastructure in place to lay cables of any kind.
The inception of the third and fourth generation of mobile networks (commonly called 3G and 4G) may render this point moot, providing high-speed access to data and streaming video content over wireless, cellular and satellite telephone networks.
Alicia King - Alicia King has been writing for Suite 101 since June of 2007. For over a year, she was the Featured Writer for the Suite section about ...
