Difference in Broadband & Wireless Internet Terms

ISP stands for "Internet service provider." When signing up for a broadband Internet connection for your computer, the company providing the service, such as a telephone company or a cable television company, is your ISP. With wireless service you may not have an ISP. A Digital Subscriber Line is the technology that brings high-speed Internet access to consumers through traditional copper telephone lines. If you get your broadband connection to the Internet via your phone lines, you will most like have DSL.

In wireless technology, the letter "G" appears in such terms as 1G, 2G, 3G and 4G. You will hear the term used with "phone" or "network," such as a "3G phone" or the "4G network." The "G" stands for generation, as in first generation, second generation, third generation and fourth generation. The generations are of mobile telephone, or more plainly, cellular technology. With each generation, more data can be transferred through the wireless technology. For instance, 3G allowed larger files like photographs and data to flow through a signal that had previously only handled voice.

"Service area" or "coverage" for your smart phone or cellular service is a designated geographic area where your wireless service will work. If you are outside a service area, you will not be able to "get a signal." Most of the United States is connected, but there are still some areas where you will find yourself without a signal. With your cable or DSL broadband account, the word "service" can mean either the cable itself or customer service.

With cable or DSL broadband in your home, your computer may connect to the Internet through a modem. With "dial-up" service, the modem connects to the telephone line. With DSL, the modem still connects to the telephone line but uses a faster technology. A cable modem allows your computer to connect to the Internet through the cable line. Your modem will connect using a technology called coaxial cable, which is the cable you have connected to your television.