The internet user market has become much more demanding than it was just a few short years ago, and this phenomenon is in large part due to the incredible access capabilities furnished by cable internet services. Since the implementation of fiber optic optimization works in many of the nations urban and suburban areas (a process that was a bother when it was carried out, but an invaluable treat when finished), cable networks have been delivering the absolute best in the internet industry—and cable customers simply won’t consider looking back.
Just as DSL and ADSL internet connections utilize the already existing phone line to create a connection, cable internet users are using the already existing cable line which they can use for TV and telephony services. Unlike phone lines, however, cable networks have the ability to offer the average user download speeds of between 5 and (in exceptional cases) 20 Mbps. Obviously, if a customer is willing to pay a higher rate, this capacity can be boosted, and, for example, many business clients get speeds in excess of 100 Mbps.
Cable internet users connect their PCs with an ethernet card, which is ideally suited to handle the heavy bursts of information coming down the line. Though in theory WiFi internet is able to handle faster speeds than an ethernet card, in practice few wireless internet providers are actually offering speeds that compare with cable internet…though over the course of time that may change. As more and more cable providers include fiber optic cable to their grid, the quality of cable internet (and TV and telephony) will invariably increase. As with just about any kind of internet service, the available bandwidth is being shared by a wide community of internet users, and providers employ different “bandwidth throttling” techniques to ensure an equal distribution and that one user doesn’t hog the service for themselves (for example, there may be monthly download limits measured in gigabytes).
