Cable internet service
Cable is one of many kinds of Broadband Internet services, offering very high speed data transfer rates. Cable internet downstream speed comes around 100 Mbit/sec and between 128 Kbps and 768 Kbps for upstream. While Cable Internet is faster than DSL Internet, it often gives lesser speed for technical reasons. One of the main reasons for this is that your neighborhood uses the Internet simultaneously, hence sharing your Internet bandwidth.
There is another form of Cable Internet services, called Asymmetric Cable that provides equal bandwidth for both uploading and downloading but due to the fact that downloading is the main requirement of majority of the users, they do not prefer this form of Cable Internet service.
With cable modem, it is very convenient for customers that they can get all - TV, Telephone and Internet from a single provider and get a combined bill for all services (unless more than one providers are used for different services)
DSL
DSL stands for Digital Subscriber Line. It is an all-time connected Internet, which does not require you to dial to the Internet Service provider.
In a DSL connection, the download speed is relatively lesser than the upload speed. However the good thing is that your Internet connection is not shared with your neighborhood giving you maximum speed all the times. Giving many PCs access to Internet with one DSL connection is practically possible. Multiple Computers whether in home or office can easily be given Internet access with just a single DSL connection.
The downstream rate you can get varies from 1 to 170 Mbit/s. New technologies are entering the markets and the speed of DSL Internet is also increasing as service providers periodically upgrade their network equipment with latest technologies.
DSL connects you to Internet through a regular telephone line and brings you an extra benefit of using telephone on the same line whilst internet connected. Customers can stay logged on to Internet for indefinitely period if they want but this creates a minor security risk because PC will use same IP address for long time giving hacker higher chance to attack your PC! However, DSL provides overall reasonably safe Internet access.
ADSL
ADSL or symmetric Digital Subscribers Line, although much faster than DSL, it can generally be used only over short distances - usually within 4 kilometers. The user must live within a certain distance of the nearest telephone exchange to receive best speeds.
ADSL connections, unlike DSL, offer higher download speeds than upload speeds.
The maximum speed for ADSL connections is 18MB. ADSL, like DSL, operates over a normal telephone line. Voice calls can still be made even when internet is in use. ADSL often presents some technical problems during its setup. Therefore installing of appropriate frequency filters at the customer's premises is necessary to avoid possible interferences with the voice service. ADSL2 and ADSL2+ are starting soon. ADSL 2 will provide download speeds of up to 24Mbps, while ADSL 2+ will offer twice of this.
Because ADSL requires its users to be located within 4 kilometer of its base, Â it has comparatively much less users than of any other form of high-speed Internet.
SDSL
SDSL is an acronym for Symmetric Digital Subscriber Line. Basically, similar to DSL with only exception to the bandwidth for up and downstream. Unlike, DSL that has less download speed than upload, SDSL is symmetric that means you can get equal bandwidth for both up and down streams.
Although a fast type of Internet, which gives up to 4 MBit/Sec speeds will still vary depending on your distance from the Internet service provider. SDSL connection best suits cooperate users because it offers consistent high-speed internet to transfer files to vendors, clients, customers, different office departments, etc.
WiMax
WiMax stands for Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access. It is a technology to deliver cost-effective and high-speed internet over long distances without using wires. To receive Internet using WiMax, two types of signal receiving equipment is available outdoor and indoor. Indoor devices are obviously convenient since these are very small in size but the subscriber must be significantly closer to WiMax base to avoid any radio losses and possible temporary disconnections.
WiMax Internet is connected at all times - there is no need to dial to the service provider. WiMax offers internet connections via Wi-Max or Wi-fi Hotspots. Hotspot is a place (e.g. a cafe, airport, home, hotel, park, etc) where Internet is wirelessly available. Public can freely use Internet by connecting their PCs to the hotspots. There many websites containing list of Hotspots. This is among the good ones. http://hotspotr.com/wifi
This technology provides up to 72 Mbit/s symmetric speeds to the radius of about 40 miles.
Mobile Internet
If you are traveling to a remote place, you will not have any of the above described internet connections available. At such a place, you may use your mobile phone's data service to connect to the internet. Nowadays, mobile internet has become very fast, offering 3G and 3.5G speed, which is approx 2-10 Mb/s. 4G, a much faster version is also available, offering speeds between 5MB and 100MB.
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