High Speed Internet in the USA

High-speed Internet service sends and receives data faster than traditional, dial-up Internet access. All broadband Internet transmits information -- whether that information is data, pictures, audio, or video content -- digitally. This means that all content is broken down into pieces, or "bits" of data, to be sent and received. A residential customer's broadband Internet can be symmetrical, meaning data is downloaded and uploaded (received and sent) at the same speed, or asymmetrical, with customers able to download (receive) content at faster speeds.

While all broadband shares these common features, the types of high-speed, broadband Internet vary in how they deliver their digital content. The types of broadband currently available in the U.S. are DSL (delivered over phone lines), cable (delivered via coaxial television cables), fiber-optic (delivered over fiber-optic cable networks), wireless (both fixed and mobile, and delivered using radio signals) and satellite. Some emerging technologies, such as Internet delivered over power lines, are also available in limited areas.

The speed at which high-speed Internet sends and receives data varies based upon the type of broadband service, the provider, how far you are from the provider's facilities and even, in some cases, how many of your neighbors are online at the time. Broadband speeds, while always faster than dial-up, can thus range from 200 Kbps (.2 Mbps) to 6 Mbps. In general, fiber-optic is the fastest service available, followed by DSL and cable, then wireless. Satellite service is usually slower than other broadband, and often has a "lag time," which makes it difficult or impossible to use for online gaming.

A big part of deciding what type of high-speed Internet service to purchase is determining which services are available in your area. Customers in major metropolitan areas often have many choices, while customers in less-populated areas have fewer options. In rural areas, some customers have no high-speed Internet available, while others can access only satellite Internet service or fixed long-range wireless Internet service. To find out what services are available in your area, you can contact your local utility companies (telephone and cable television), or call your state's public service commission.