Broadband Providers Speed Tests
An interesting article was posted on the BBC news website today about UK broadband speeds which revealed "Nearly one fifth of UK broadband customers on an eight Megabit per second (Mbps) connection actually receive less than 2Mbps."
The research also showed that "less than 9% of users received more than 6Mbps."
So what's the point in advertising speeds of up to 8Mbps when the chances are you can't get it? Well it's a sales gimmick. One thing you can do though is compare the speeds of different providers so that you are with the best for your needs.
The BBC had a useful comparison on this also, showing Virgin Media as the fastest provider (however, their coverage is mainly limited to urban areas).
Original article: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8171074.stm
The research also showed that "less than 9% of users received more than 6Mbps."
So what's the point in advertising speeds of up to 8Mbps when the chances are you can't get it? Well it's a sales gimmick. One thing you can do though is compare the speeds of different providers so that you are with the best for your needs.
The BBC had a useful comparison on this also, showing Virgin Media as the fastest provider (however, their coverage is mainly limited to urban areas).
| ...is slower than... | ...is faster than... | |
|---|---|---|
| All services at 8Mbit/s except Virgin Media at 10Mbps | ||
| Source: Ofcom | ||
| AOL | O2, Orange, Plusnet, Sky, Talktalk, Virgin Media | |
| BT | O2, Virgin Media | Tiscali |
| O2 | Virgin Media | AOL, BT, Tiscali |
| Orange | Virgin Media | AOL, Tiscali |
| Plusnet | Virgin Media | AOL, Tiscali |
| Sky | Virgin Media | AOL, Tiscali |
| Talktalk | Virgin Media | AOL, Tiscali |
| Tiscali | BT, O2, Orange, Plusnet, Sky, Talktalk, Virgin Media | |
| Virgin Media | AOL, BT, O2, Orange, Plusnet, Sky, Talktalk, Tiscali | |
posted by WebMe at
09:44 Tuesday, 28 July 2009
