Types of Internet Connections

There are several different types of internet service. These types range from single user dial up internet service to fiber optic high bandwidth connections capable of providing internet service to an entire community or region.

Dial-Up connections - To 'Dial-up' you will need a phone-line, modem, and ISP. They operate at speeds of 14.4Kbit, 28.8Kbit, or 56Kbit download.

ISDN - ISDN(Integrated Services Digital Network) is a type of Dial-up connection with faster speeds. Common speeds of 128Kbit and 256Kbit download.

DSL - Digital Subscriber Line. There are MANY different types of DSL. Here are a few:

    ADSL - Asymmetric DSL is Common to most households, supports up to 24Mbit down

    and 3.5Mbit up, but you never see that much. You get about1.5MBit down and 128Kbit

    up.

    SDSL - Symmetric DSL is like ADSL, but with the same download speed as upload

    speed.

Cable - Cable internet is connected through the coaxial cables that you would normally use for cable tv. It is very fast, Cable gives you 4Mbit download and 256-384Kbit Upload.

Tier-Carrier - Consists of many tiers of speed.

    T1 - Tier1- download speed is 1.5Mbit/1.5Mbit, symmetrical download and upload.

    T3 - Tier3- Very fast, but very expensive. 44Mbit downloads.

    T2,T4,T5 - Tier 2,4, and 5 are not used as much as above but have speeds of 6Mbit(T2)

    , 274Mbit(T4), and 400Mbit(T5)

Optical Cable - The best internet connection period. From OC3 to OC255 and beyond, speeds of 1Gbit are possible.

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