What is the difference between DSL and Cable?

[beach2nd1]

Is there one or are they the same thing?

 

[formulav8]

Cable runs through your cable tv line. Dsl run through your phone line.

 

[Whitedog]

Also, cable is shared bandwidth, as in there is no point to point connection. DSL is point to point meaning you're line goes directly to the local phone hub.
Cable is lopped across everyone until it gets to the main hub. That's why "the more people get on cable, the worse your connection gets"

Most people will try to say Cable is better.. well, it is, as long as it's not loaded down, but there is a threashold where it becomes worse... much worse. I have a coworker used to live in a "not so populated" area that had cable, he claimed it SCREAMED! He lives in a crouded area now where everyone has cable and claims ISDN would be better.

 

[pr0d2]

If your cable company upgrades there systems based on per-users you will be fine.
cable is generaly ~faster and Cheaper the aDSL

ADSL can Achieve Downstreams of 9Mbs and Upstreams of 1.5Mbps in a ratio of 10:1
note- you must be close to the central office & to get thoes speeds you gota pay a high price.
none the less depending on the ISP aDSL is more releable then cable..

Cable has 27Mbps downstream & 4Mbps upstream MAX,
downside its shared,
upside, much cheaper ( Local comapny has a 10Mbs downsteam and 3.5 Meg Upstream for 99$/m
(there are companys out there who have made somthing to enable personal streams on cable and its in beta testing)

 

[troubledshooter]

Well, I lived in, and had cable in a completely populated area (never seen a density study of West LA, but I think you guys get the picture) and it did scream. The biggeset (only?) downside to cable is the upstream. If you consider the nature of the technolody, cable is made to bring hundreds of media intensive channels to your television. Translate that into bandwidth and it makes intuitive sense that it has to be a huge pipeline. On the other hand, what does that same cable send back? Zilch. The implimentation of such upstream is much more difficult than adding data to already media intensive downstream.

This said, my experiences:

4 computers shared via a 10mb hub and a software router:
Apple Crashforma 6300: 4k/s web browsing, 0-100k/s download
Apple G3 Beige: 60+k/s web browsing, 0-250k/s download
500 mhz Intel box: 80+k/s web browsing, 0-350k/s download
My sys (see below): 150+k/s web browsing, 0-550k/s download

These aren't exagerations. The faster the computer, the faster it can decode the HTML which is why web browsing increases drastically. The download I would htink has more to do with the HD, but I'm not really an expert. I currently live in a dorm, and I would KILL to have my old cable connection. Even @ peak times, whatever, the speeds were always incredible.

gl

 

[DazedAndConfused]

One Thing about DSL if you get it then check your ISP backbone out, if it is not a screacher I'd Say 20Mb a sec then you asre going to be really disapointed, as Once DSL gets to the Telco Router you along with everyone else still share the same backbone bandwidth and if that is not sufficent then you get the same problem as Cable is so hated for ( Low Speed, Many users).

Dazed

 

[jmcoreymv]

Common misconception, both DSL and Cable are shared, dsl is just shared at the DSLAM, but regardless, i like my dsl more (better pings).

 

[NOSOUP4U]

And also DSL stands for digital susriber line and cable doesnt.

 

[MasterMind]

xDSL is technicaly better for several reasons but cable runs a strong second considering it is over a broadcast-oriented system.

Cable networks use DOCSIS (Data Over Cable Service Interface Specifications) compared to xDSL services that use the much more mature DSL standard. Cable is also shared access compared to the dedicated access that DSL provides. But all DSL service providers oversell the bandwidth they own so DSL still gets shared down the line.

DSL is also scalable meaning a ISP can upgrade bandwidth capacity on the existing network. VDSL is scalable up to 52Mb down and 34 up.

But to pick the best service, if you have both to choose from, call the service provider and get rates for the monthly cost and access speeds and then pick the best value.

 

[HiCap]

I tend to believe a big difference with DSL is security. I have an "always on" connection, but you "dial-in" to it whenever you want to start up your service, giving my a dynamic IP address. My ISP (US West/Qwest) does offer static IP's to those who want them (higher cost). My speed is 640k/272k down/up and it's the slowest package they offer at around $35 a month. Call me biased, but I can't see giving AT&T my money for TV, internet, AND telephone service!!

 

[RossMAN]

If you're in a relatively new AT&T @Home cable Internet area (such as I am - Portland, Oregon) then GET IT! It's soo freaking fast 3MB/sec and they are dying for new customers that's why they are currently offering new customer promotions such as free until 2001 (basically 2 months free) with no committment. Then after AT&T @Home cable gets slow, jump back to DSL.

Check for AT&T @Home availability in your area.

 

[Alphacowboy]

HiCap, where do you live? I actually work for AT&T in Minnesota, I would deal with this company way before Qwest! Yes I am bias because I work here but Qwest has screwed so many of my friends over I wouldn't even pay them a dime! With that said, Cable I think is the way to go. If you live in an area that has been upgraded to the new cable system it makes a world of difference, the old system sucked, this new fiberoptic system kicks ass! And there is very little difference between the residential DSL and cable, seriously the residential DSL uses the same pricipal...

EX:
Cable
Web Backbone..Headend..fiberfeed..HUB..Fiberfeed..NODE..large copper coxial feed..TAP..copper coxial..your house
DSL
Web Backbone..Main switch board..fiberfeed..HUB..copper feed..neighborhood switch..copper.. your house

as you can see the basic principal is the same and the original Phone system was designed just for that Phone service, just as cable was for TV. They are piggy backing another service on the same line just at a higher freq. One big misconception with cable is that if everyone on your block is hooked up you are going to experiance slower speeds, the truth is you might to a certain extent but its no different than the DSL you can get to your door (unless you pay for a business line) and with any internet connection, they all end up sharing at one point and I don't care if you have DSL or Cable or T1 or T3, at 7-10PM you WILL experiance slow downs PERIOD!

PS if you have any questions on the cable modems shoot me a line and I will help you out the best I can.

 

[Aybara]

Alpha, I've been to a website that claimed it has a registry entry that increases the cable modem bandwidth. Is there any truth to this?

 

[Alphacowboy]

Modem Tweaks at SpeedGuide.net

Yes they can help.... BUT I didn't tell you that! Just to let you know though, most Cable Modems are governed, but you can get burst that are higher. Also download accelerators kick serious a$$... one download test we ran pulled 250KBps!!! thats almost 2.5Mb!!! on a 1.5Mb service!

 

[Tonec]

250kbps does not equal 2.5mb, 2500kbps=2.5mb.

 

[formulav8]

Here cable is much faster then Bellsouths 1.5 ADSL. I have cable and download twice as fast as dsl and have much better pings. Cable here is definitely much more reliable then dsl. Dsl you definitely have to have a dial-up ISP. That is why most dsl companys give you free dial-up because they know that you will need it. I have had cable for about 6 months now and only had one glitch for about 2 hours. Also i get bursts of 450 k\bytes sec. I get steady 150-250 k\byte downloads. Even at peak times i don't go much below the advertised 1.5 m\bits per sec. I also have decent 300 to 350 kbit uploads. I would never go to dsl. I know someone that has it and has nothing but problems. Plus dsl is to slow compared to my cable.

 

[Alphacowboy]

Tonac.... sorry typo... I flaked for a sec... but isn't 250KBps (B=Bytes b=Bits) = 2.5Mb or around there?

 

[db]

It also depends on the company providing the service. In St. Louis, Southwestern Bell provides the DSL but their service is not so good: they do not appear to even monitor their own network so don't know there is an outage unless you call them. They have outages often here, but on the other hand, cable users in the area have almost NO outages.

 

[randypj]

Those of you who have DSL....when you pick a speed plan, don't you get a speed committment?

I can go with ATT@home cable (I have cable already), or DSL. My local carrier is Southwestern Bell, but they say I am too far. But, supposedly, according to my ISP, I can get it through them (they use Covad). I can get 384/728 (not sure about the exact digits) for ~$55 total/month. OK, price seems kind of steep, and they have no speed guarantee. Supposedly, they will work with me to try to help if the speed isn't there. I can also pay $20 to downgrade the service if the speed isn't there.

My ISP is Internet America and they have always been straight up, especially with tech support. I would welcome comments. Oh, I found a fairly decent forum on www.2wire.com, IMHO. Some fairly good tech suggestions.
--Randy

 

[Chriz]

God I love cable I just wish that AT&T broadband (formerly Mediaone) here in minnesota could increase the upstream speed. I like to run a Q3 server and it's so limited because of the upstream. Wish they could offer faster speeds for higher price. Qwest DSL megabit is worthless. To get equal downstream cable modem speeds you have to pay at least 200 dollars a month. Not only that, but it's limited. Have to be within 15,000 feet of a switching station, and most people aren't. Like me. Insane.

 

[Alphacowboy]

Chriz... what part of Minnesota do you live in, I work for AT&T BB, just wait I haven't seen anything yet but we all are asking for higher speeds, keeping bugging for it and you might get it... just remember, I didn't say anything!

 

[GoldServe]

Does anyone live in the Canada -> Ontario -> Toronto or Hamilton area and have the high speed wireless service? i wanna hear some speeds and experiences! Please post! Look UltraFast 2

 

[Chriz]

AlphaCowboy, I live in Moundsview, ramsey county (next to new brighton). Sounds good, i'll keep my hopes up.

Hey Alphacowboy, is AT&T broadband in need of any tech support or network engineers? I am 22 currently looking for one of those positions. I would be really interested in working there. I am A+, network+, MCSE certified (which i went to school for), and i also have a lot of tech support and customer service experience. If you could refer me or something, that would be really cool and I would worship you forever

 

[Wolfie]

Wow, didn't know there was so many minnesotans' out there. I am from White Bear Lake and I have RR. (Or what is now known as AT@T)
I like it. And I know lots of ppl that have had lots of problems with Quest. (Formaly USWorst)
They tell you that you are available... Install everything... then find out later that your phone lines are either too old or your out of area. Talk about a waste of time. Compare that with Cable that gets installed within a week.

Alphacowboy
If you work for AT@T like you say you do. THANK YOU!!! And I hope that everthing will be the same way when mediaone owned the cable. I love my cable modem... I get anywhere from 250K/sec to 400K/sec dl speeds. Uploads are around 30-40K/sec. Sure beats dialup.

One other thing Alphacowboy What are they going to do with us users that have webpages and Emails that are on mediaone.net? Are they all going to change over within a certin time frame or will they stay mediaone.net? I would hate to tell everyone I know that my Email got changed again.

beach2nd
Go with what you can get. Talk to ppl around your neighborhood that have either or and see what they get for speeds. If the cable ppl say that it is slow, then I would go with DSL. I could not choose because DSL was not offered in my area. And they could not tell me if they where going to "upgrade" my area or not. Good luck.....

Wolf

 

[NesuD]

Alphacowboy I beleive the conversion for bits to bytes is 8 bits to a byte so 250 kBytes is closer to 2 mbits which is about 25% faster than T1 speed which is 1.5 mbits. I have a somewhat unique cable setup that I have yet to hear of anywhere else. The company calls it cable Ethernet. It comes through my residential cable system which was brand new in march. It is capable of tv, internet, and telephone signals on the single line. It doesn't require a cable modem. there is a box on the side of my house that has something they called a data card in it all I do is run a cat 5 cable from the jack on the box outside my house to either the nic in my computer or to the uplink port in my hub to have all the machines on my network connected. Each machine connected to my hub gets an ip assigned by their DHCP server and they say 1.0 mbit speed up and down although I have found that it usually runs more like 1.2-1.6 mbits most of the time. Anyone ever heard of a setup like this? The tech that installed it said it is similar to a WAN setup unfortunately I have no experience with Wans so I don't know if he even knew what he was talking about.