Improving My Internet To Improve My Life

Are you moving into an area where you actually have options for your home Internet service provider (ISP)? If so, you may be wondering what you should be looking at when comparing services. 

Download Speeds

The biggest difference that is advertised between ISPs is their download speeds, with packages often being named based on the download speed that is being offered. As you can imagine, faster download speeds are going to result in a higher monthly fee, but do you really need all that speed?

If you occasionally stream videos on one or two devices simultaneously and have basic needs for web surfing and email at other times during the day, a slower service is going to be fine and save you money. Something in the 200 Mbps to 300 Mbps range is going to be just fine, and you won't need to pay top dollar for 1 Gbps service.

However, anyone that deals with large file transfers will prefer the higher download transfer speeds. It's the difference between large files taking days or hours to finish downloading.

Upload Speeds

Always pay attention to how fast the upload speeds are when selecting a service. Many ISPs are not proportional with the same upload and download speeds, with them often offering slower upload speeds to customers with those cheaper packages. In addition, coaxial-based Internet service is known for having a cap on how fast you can upload, which is based on the amount of bonded channels used in your area dedicated for uploading data. A fiber-based ISP often has uncapped upload speeds that match the download speed of your package. 

Data Caps

The truth is that most people are not affected by the data caps that ISPs put in place. However, it is very important to those that are affected by it. If you are transferring many large files while working at home, you can quickly run into a data cap issue before the month is over, leading to unexpected overages and the risk of losing access to your ISP. 

Rental Costs

Some people prefer to rent their equipment from their ISP for the modem and router because if there is a problem, they can have someone come out and replace it. Others prefer to provide their own equipment because it saves money and they can troubleshoot problems on their own. Always look at the equipment rental costs so that you know what you are being charged and can decide if it is a fair price for the service you get. 

Contact a home Internet service to learn more.