which is better? DSL or Broadband?

Question

I have Media Com broadband at home, we run DSL at work. Can't tell the difference in connecting to the internet, but which would be the better value?

Answer 1

DSL is just a form of Broadband, just as T1, cable modem, high-speed satellite, etc... are. Asking if DSL is better than broadband is like asking if driving a Toyota is better than driving a car.



What you probably mean to ask is which is better... DSL or cable modem.



In most situations, cable modem's now far out-pace their DSL cousins. Most DSL connections cap out at 1.54 Mbps (there are exceptions, consult with your local provider). A standard cable modem today usually STARTS at 5 Mpbs and can far exceed that. My current cable modem connection is 12 Mbps, or almost 8x the speed of a standard DSL connection at its best.



The best way to determine which is the best value for you is to consider your usage. Do you do a lot of downloading or streaming? Do you often find yourself using live video chats? Or are you more of the web page now and then, e-mail mostly type users?



If you do a lot of downloading, go for the fastest connection you can afford... you'll benefit from the increased speed.



However, if all you do is occasionally browse the web and read e-mails, go for which ever form of broadband is most economical. After all, the difference in speed between a 1.5 Mbps DSL and 15 Mbps cable is only noticeable if you do lots of downloading... the speed difference will be almost unnoticeable if all you are doing is clicking through web pages.



So consider your usage and compare the speeds and cost of the different options in your area. Then find the one that meets your speed requirements at a price you find acceptible.



Hope that helps!

Answer 2

This is not a scientific answer, but I used to have broadband. It was very fast and I liked it because of that. Problem was that it was also very expensive comparatively speaking. So, in order to save money I got rid of it and got DSL. The only time I personally notice a difference is when I download something from iTunes, etc. If it's big like a movie or something of that sort, I just do it just before I go to bed and then I don't notice. For surfing the web and stuff like that, I never notice the speed difference.



Thus, in my opinion if money is no object, go broadband it's faster. If money IS an object go DSL as you will probably be able to live with the difference.



Hope this helps.

Answer 3

DSL has come a long way in the past few years. Depending on your needs, providers may allow you to select the type of connection you need. The usage fees are directly related to the amount of bandwidth you want. In the past, DSL bandwidth was usually lower than Cable connections but most providers now offer several packages. (256Kb/second or 512Kb/second being the most common.) Both are fast but if you expect to be transferring large files, it may take longer to transfer those files than it would with a cable connection. Additionally, if you're into multiplayer gaming, First Person Shooters especially, you may experience more game lag than with a cable connection, but for surfing the net, chatting and email applications, either will work just fine. You didn't specify the bandwidth your connection provides, nor did you state what you're doing with your computer, so there's no way to say if switching to a cable connection would be worthwhile. Check out your internet provider's website for more information about the services and connections they provide. Head over to PC Pitstop to run an internet speed test to see where you're at. Poke around while you're there. You'll find a ton of useful info on how to make the most of your connection.

Answer 4

Broadband

http://www.telecom.co.nz/broadband



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This offer is not related to any Mobile Broadband plans or downloading data.



Offer terms and conditions.



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Telecom's standard Broadband connection only. To use Telecom Broadband you need a Telecom landline and landline charges apply (including any landline connection charges). A Broadband Wiring charge of $199 may apply in some instances, for example if you have a monitored alarm or more than five jack points in use. Offer ends 31 January 2010.



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Answer 5

DSL is broadband. But the broadband that you are talking about sounds like cable. Cable has better potential speeds than DSL but cable will be a shared connection with people in your neighborhood while DSL isn't. So with cable your bandwidth speed could go down but DSL should stay stable.

Answer 6

DSLwill forever drop in and out, you will have to reset the modem, and sometimes even that wont work, then call your dsl provider, and have them reset it as well, only to have it drop in another two hours or so.. that was my experience with bellsouth's dsl. always and forever...not to say that downloading and streaming ANYTHING, its pointless. you tube? forget it! you will sit there looking at the screen for over 10 minutes, with the video TRYING to stream, and stopping every 10/20 frames. pure crap.. dsl in my opinion sucks---its just one step above dial up...

CABLE on the other hand is beyond my expectations! it virtually never goes down, and if it does--all you have to do, is push a button, wait 2 minutes and you are back up. videos, movies and anything else you wanna do are a pleasure doing. depending on the package you got from your cable provider, you can download fully movies at over 400 kbs and be done with it in minutes. i have 3 desktops one laptop, and one playstation 3, running on the same router, and i am never down. i spend lots of time playing games on the ps3- like MAG, SOCOM, and others, that require a steady connection. with an unstable connection your game will "lag" and you will end up losing a match--

i spend time playing poker online-play chips- and i always laugh when someone gets disconnected in the middle of a hand. especially a good hand... they ***** and moan about how the server its bad, and how the poker site should do something about it...i look at my connection 100% and say--dsl sucks- you should get cable. these are just personal experiences-dont want to offend anyone.

hope that my answer helped a little

have a great week!

Answer 7

Ah ... hmmm ... DSL generally IS broadband. Not sure if your question makes sense.



The choices for broadband Internet access these days seems to be:

1. DSL - Reliable and generally provides fixed bandwidth.

2. Cable - My personal experience is that it's not as reliable, but when it's up, it can get better bandwidth than DSL

3. Fiber (FIOS) - Reliable and fast. The best choice, in my opinion.

4. Wireless - Community-wide wireless plans are available in some areas. You get adequate bandwidth, not as good as DSL or cable or Fiber, but adequate.



I hope this helps!



Dan

Answer 8

In my experience DSL has always been a tad faster than broadband (not a very noticable difference) but i have always used DSL and im very happy with it

Answer 9

I have ATT Dsl at home, broadband at work..I can't tell the difference either



I think the DSL is cheaper....AT&T has DSL for 19.99 per month, and 35.00 per month ("PRO")



they both seem to run the same speed...

Answer 10

it depends if you can get dsl but i got a internet card from spirnt... and it is a broadband one and it is very good goes to google in 2 secs and on games no lag at all... no delay's but u can't go on youtube as much as u like that's the only penelty ive seen so far.

Answer 11

broadband can be faster at times, and DSL has it's limits. broadband just has more potential. I would prefer broadband, but maybe that's just me.



edit: seems like your talking about cable internet when you refer to broadband.

Answer 12

They are virtually the same. Whichever one is cheaper and whichever one your house is wired for; go for that one. You'll never know the difference.



The advertising is very sneaky. In my city the cable company shows a phone wire compared to a cable TV wire and says that the cable TV wire must be better because it's 'fatter' and therefore must be capable of carrying more data. What a hoot.



I guess they've not seen fiber-optic technology. ;)

Answer 13

Havent you seen the commercials? They're both better!

Answer 14

broadbannd (: