Promising greater connection speeds at ‘service appropriated prices’, broadband suppliers far and wide are battling to out-beat their competitors with appealing broadband packages and bundles. However, despite all of their assurances, very few are proving to deliver those great speeds. This article will review how to conduct broadband speed tests, internet speed test results meaning, and what the realistic broadband speed is expected to be.
The Internet is arguably one of the most important, dependable and highly informative technological development in the world. During the 90’s and early 2000’s, Internet connections had to be dialed through telephones. These connections ran at an excruciatingly disinclined 56k, this made it painfully difficult to download anything other than text. It would roughly take about 10-15 minutes, at full speed, to download a poor quality song (3.5MB) however, the unpredictability of the Internet could turn this 10-15 minutes into a realistic 30 minutes to multiple hours. Worse still, downloading videos/movies would take 25-30 hours at full speed and around 3-5 days at low speed, and downloading high quality games was almost impossible.
In the early 2000’s, the creation of Broadband brought a refreshing and much needed change to the Internet. Broadband technology in the years since, has improved and expanded, allowing users to access the Internet with faster connection speeds without the inconvenience of disrupting the usage of their telephone. Broadband allows for the signal in one line to be split between the Internet and telephone, therefore allowing users to access them at a faster speed and simultaneously.
Broadband made it possible for people to download songs, files, movies and TV shows at higher speeds. The increase in connection speed unlocked a whole new online media platform with access to sites such as YouTube that weren’t realistically achievable via dial up Internet.
Why and how to test your broadband speed
Many different broadband suppliers promise to provide faster and stronger broadband speeds than that of competing suppliers at affordable prices. A lot of companies however fail to provide these connections and speeds. This is the prime reason why it is so important and useful to check how fast your broadband really is. Completing a broadband speed test allows you to know exactly how fast your connection is and the speed you are getting. By doing so, you can see whether your broadband supplier has told you the truth about the services and connections they deliver.
Conducting regular speed tests throughout the duration of your contract allows you to see if you’re getting the services that you are paying for and whether you’re consistently getting the speeds you are promised. Not only do broadband tests allow you to determine whether you are getting what you’re paying for, they also allow you to find the best times to browse and download. Using a broadband speed tester at various times throughout the day can help you to identify when your networks connection is at its strongest.
Broadband speed tests can be done within seconds on hundreds of different sites. A simple Google search of ‘broadband speed tests’ will find you various different tests and sites to choose from, which can assist you in choosing a faster broadband. Although the questions and formations of these tests do vary from site to site, overall they are very similar and constant.
Step-By-Step Broadband Speed Test
The following is a typical broadband speed test conducted via the Money Supermarket website;
- The first part of the test asks for your current location. If you are testing your home broadband speed, you would enter your home address, if you are testing your workplaces broadband speed, you would enter the businesses address and so on. This is done to find out how strong the broadband connection speed is in your area.
- The test then asks for your current broadband provider. This is done to test how fast your broadband provider’s connection speeds are in your area.
- You would then typically be asked to select your connection type, the options given to you may include ADSL, Cable, Fibre and Other if unsure. Your connection type could affect you connection speeds in some cases when taking into account your area and broadband provider.
- You may be asked whether you’re subscribed to a TV service, the options given may be Sky, Virgin, Other or No. Subscription to a TV service could affect the speed of your connections in some cases when your area and broadband providers are taken into consideration.
- Finally, submit the information. The test will then provide you with results on your download speed as well as the download speed for your area, taking into consideration the information you input.
The average broadband speed worldwide is 1.8 Mbit/s. This varies from place to place and is affected by various factors, these include:
- Climate
- Distance- How close you live to your local telephone exchange.
- Broadband provider
- The price you pay for your broadband package
The Internet has come a long way since the early days of dial-up connections, Broadband is constantly improving and adapting to modern day technology to provide greater speeds and connections. Tools such as broadband speed tests allow for people to easily and conveniently check their broadband and see for themselves whether they’re getting their money’s worth.
Broadband is an important technological development that will continue to improve and strengthen for years to come, but in order to ensure high performance and deliverance of server promised broadband speeds, we must adopt continuing practice of broadband speed checks!
If you think your internet speed is not up to the mark and you need a faster internet connection in Waterford then Waterford, CT u-verse is the package for you.
Neal Bricker is a passionate tech buff who has written on technology topics for a number of magazines and websites, and is always looking at the latest happenings in the tech world.
Related Articles
Hi
Testing your broadband connection is something anyone should do from time to time. Don’t expect you provider to give you a call if they don’t deliver the speed they promise. If you can’t get the speed you are paying for you might get a better price.