DSL vs Cable Modem

From what I have been seeing...cable is faster. Have a friend up in the hills in my area who completely blows my speed aside.

My understanding cable is OVERALL faster but you share bandwidth with other's in your area. DSL is a straight pipe to you so it should be more consistent.

Cable seems to have greater peaks and valleys, where DSL gives you a steadier speed. So at times, Cable will absolutely blow away DSL. Of course, this also depends on which DSL you have - SDSL, ADSL, and if your bandwidth is capped by your "plan."

For gaming online, those peaks and valleys aren't so great - supposedly. Though I've never had problems with my Roadrunner.

Also: <a href="http://www.flasharcade.com/game.cgi?cablevsdsl" target="_blank">http://www.flasharcade.com/game.cgi?cablevsdsl</a>

[Edited: Posted before I saw Eyeball's post about caps]

I don't think that Road Runner puts a cap on it's download/upload, but Comcast (my cable provider) has a cap of 1500/128.

So, it's not really cable vs. dsl, but cap vs. non-cap.

If you haven't already, check out <a href="http://www.dslreports.com" target="_blank">Dsl Reports</a>.

They also have a <a href="http://www.dslreports.com/forum/ilec,bels" target="_blank">Bell South Forum</a>.

*Despite the fact I think I was very objective, I'd like to disclose that I work for BellSouth (the phone company, not the ISP)*

DSL speed depends on quite a few factors, but the most important is your distance to your local central office. The maximum distance that Bellsouth allows between those two points is 17,000 feet, which is roughly three miles. Folks that are near the outer edge will not as fast a connection as folks living one or two blocks from their CO.

My experience has been similar to those posted above. Cable is usually capable of higher speeds, but there are a lot more slow downs during peak usage hours. DSL is generally more consistent. Also, if you have an IFITL connection (Integrated Fiber in the Loop), it'll go faster than a standard DSL connection via copper wires. IFITL is only available in very few areas at this point, as the upgrade to those new fangled fiber optic lines has been slow. That type of connection does not require a DSL modem, and it's more expensive to set-up, since a Bellsouth tech has to do the installation ($99) from the outside box directly to your computer.

DSL and Cable vary wildly in any given location, so ideally you'd want to try the one offering the best deal, then switch only if the service is atrociously slow. Anything is better than dial-up.

*edit to add that Bellsouth's DSL cap is 1500down/256up.

You can always try to find out who among your neighbors has cable. If there are many who do, then, as stated here, it'll affect you adversely. My bandwidth sucks especially when I'm connected to xbox live with my neighbors. You see immediately droppage in your UL/DL numbers.

Also, I got a note from my provider saying that if I use file sharing programs, they automatically cap my bandwidth. Must've been in the fine print. I'm getting less happy with my cable each day, but here, there's little alternative.

Yeah, those DSL Reports tweaks are highly reccommended. One of the more effective tweaks is to increase the packet size, since DSL is capable of swallowing bigger chunks of data than 56k connections.

DSL Reports is a great site. They helped me find a hack for my DSL modem that turned it into a Router as well. And helped me get everything set up correctly once I finished the hack.

And I've got a friend that has a cable modem. He said he doesn't even get online between 5 and 8 PM because it slows down so much, due to everyone getting home from work in his neighborhood and logging on at the same time.

Love the sig, Martian. It's always good to fully disclose.

That's it, Scott! With DSL, you also have to be within 12,000 ft. of the Central Office (which is the switching station for all phone calls.) More recently, I have heard that figure is closer to 17,500 ft.

Also, Cable Modems has a faster upload speed while DSL has a faster download speed.

The only reason I know all this is because I have a B.S. in Telecommunications Management.

My cable connection generally doubles the speed of my friends with DSL. Of course I live in getto outer Southeast Portland and live in techie-filled Beaverton.

Dsl rules. i have guaranteed 1.5MB p/sec download and 768k upload. if not, i get that month free.

I'm pretty displeased with the package I have from Charter. It's "bronze" digital cable and the lowest internet package (384kbps/128kbps) for $75 a month. The highest internet speed offered is 1000/128. I'm probably gonna switch to BellSouth DSL when I get my new apartment in August. I use it whenever I'm at my parents' house and it seems to be reliable and speedy. I think it's $50 a month and it's faster than the "Gold" level at Charter which is the same price.

Plus, I really hate the Dan Aykroyd recordings when I have to call for tech support.

I gave DSL my all, but I'm heading back to Comcast.

Earthlink has good customer service, but neither they nor Bellsouth nor Covad could ever figure out why my modem wouldn't stay synced up. And even when it was, I had download speeds of around 110-170K, whereas my cable modem smokes at around 2.2 Megs.

I'd prefer Earthlinks's superior service and pricing, but I don't really have any other viable option aside from Comcast cable for broadband in my apartment complex.

I have been an Earthlink customer from day one. I'll never switch my provider if I don't have to. They have been outstanding in any service area where I've needed them.

I don't see a need for higher speed in my case. Partially, because of what I download and for the fact that I'm not on the computer enough to warrant the higher price.

Then again, it would make it possible for me to go through some of the links here past page 3 without waiting forever. (I still don't know what half of you look like.) LOL

Good luck to all in regards to your choice of ISP and option choices. To each their own, I guess.

I've had earthlink dsl for the past two years and loved it. I'm gettting ready to move into a new apartment and looking for ways to cut costs. I've been considering switching from dsl to a cable modem to avoid having to pay a phone bill. Well, I called earthlink yesterday to inquire about their cable modem plans and the rep told me that they couldn't tell me if I could get cable modem access because everytime they entered my name in their system it showed I already had Earthlink DSL. He suggested I cancel my dsl and then call back to see if I was eligible for their cable modem I then asked him if he realized how stupid what he said was and he was like "yeah, but I don't know what else to do" So, I hung up and called comcast.