How does getting internet work

[Lurick]

4 minutes ago, jagomaster74 said:

Does it matter what service provider im with? Are there other providers that would charge less

That's what we're going to try and help with. Check the area for other providers, if any.

Some places only have 1 provider, others have many.

[Lurick]

To be clear, even a zip code can give bad information.

If you search ISPs in 27511, my zip, you'll see all sorts of options but then you narrow down by address and that can change a lot. Google Fiber for example is available 2 blocks away from me but not at my address even though we're in the same zip code.

 

To get the best results something these sites is a good starting point for your options:

https://www.inmyarea.com/internet

https://broadbandnow.com/

[jagomaster74]

1 minute ago, Lurick said:

To be clear, even a zip code can give bad information.

If you search ISPs in 27511, my zip, you'll see all sorts of options but then you narrow down by address and that can change a lot. Google Fiber for example is available 2 blocks away from me but not at my address even though we're in the same zip code.

 

To get the best results something these sites is a good starting point for your options:

https://www.inmyarea.com/internet

https://broadbandnow.com/

Oh okay, thanks

[Senzelian]

16 minutes ago, 5x5 said:

Pretty much, yes. Serbia should also count but I haven't been there. 

According to the following website, Serbia, Ukrain and Belarus range from bad to average.

And even Bulgaria and Romania aren't any better than the US.

 

https://www.fastmetrics.com/internet-connection-speed-by-country.php

 

I'd say Europe is pretty bad, apart from the Switzerland (8.4mil), Netherlands (17mil), Norway (5.2mil), Sweden (10mil), Iceland (0.3mil) and Finland (5.5mil). The Czech Republic (10.8mil) isn't bad either. (Alltogether a population of 57.2 million).

 

But now look at countries like Germany (82mil) , France (67mil) and Italy (60mil), which make out most of the population in the EU and you'll see that the internet speeds here are kinda garbage, especially when considering that Germany and France are some of the wealthiest countries. And if we're talking about Europe as a kontinent, it looks even worse, because then we gotta account for Russia too.

 

So what I'd like to proof with this is, that the average internet speed is much more important to look at, than the peaks and that we should also look at the population of countries when doing these kinds of comparisons. Otherwise I'd say Germany has the best internet ever, cause some company spends like a million a year for a terabit uplink to DE-CIX, which would be of course utter nonsense.

[jagomaster74]

7 minutes ago, Lurick said:

To be clear, even a zip code can give bad information.

If you search ISPs in 27511, my zip, you'll see all sorts of options but then you narrow down by address and that can change a lot. Google Fiber for example is available 2 blocks away from me but not at my address even though we're in the same zip code.

 

To get the best results something these sites is a good starting point for your options:

https://www.inmyarea.com/internet

https://broadbandnow.com/

Im fucked, the highest it goes in my zip code is 25mbs T_T

[Lurick]

Just now, jagomaster74 said:

Im fucked, the highest it goes in my zip code is 25mbs T_T

That sucks

Unfortunately there isn't much you can do either but wait and hope they upgrade your area in the future =/

[jagomaster74]

1 minute ago, Lurick said:

That sucks

Unfortunately there isn't much you can do either but wait and hope they upgrade your area in the future =/

Thanks for helping me understand though, i wouldve carelessly wasted money if i never posted this forum. Now i know what to look at next time i move

[Donut417]

4 hours ago, jagomaster74 said:

Does it matter what service provider im with? Are there other providers that would charge less

Well in my case xfinity is the only choice. Prices are not set nation wide. Each isp has its coverage area split in to territories. For example the Xfinity north east territory has no data caps. While Michigan where I live we have data caps. Also speed tiers also depend on the area as well. 

[Donut417]

12 hours ago, jagomaster74 said:

Im fucked, the highest it goes in my zip code is 25mbs T_T

If thats according to the FCC's data, then its probably wrong. Xfinity probably has faster plans than that. You just have to look on their site. Gigabit might be a stretch in some areas, but I figure they have at least 50-75 Mbps in most areas. Also they are currently in the middle of the N+0 upgrades, so that should also help with speeds and congestion. But if they are you only choice, they know it, and they will charge you accordingly. 

[Trinopoty]

If a 25mbps connection costs $40, try to find a different ISP that will give you better deal.

About the modem, the ISPs at my place give you a free modem with connection. I don't know how things work at your place, check to see if they give you a modem (not the best I'd say but gets the job done).

[Donut417]

9 hours ago, Trinopoty said:

try to find a different ISP that will give you better deal.

The OP is in the US. The US generally you have one or two wired ISP's you can choose from. Then you have LTE and Satellite which have data caps or some type of throttling attached. 

 

9 hours ago, Trinopoty said:

bout the modem, the ISPs at my place give you a free modem with connection. I

Not always in the US. Charter is one of the few Cable ISP's that doesn't charge, but they use the shitty Puma 6 chip modems, so your better off buying your own. Comcast (Xfinity) Charges $11-$15 a month for modem rental. I know AT&T charges and most other cable ISP's from what I have seen charge a monthly rental fee, im sure most DSL providers also do. 

[Trinopoty]

15 hours ago, Donut417 said:

The OP is in the US. The US generally you have one or two wired ISP's you can choose from. Then you have LTE and Satellite which have data caps or some type of throttling attached. 

 

Not always in the US. Charter is one of the few Cable ISP's that doesn't charge, but they use the shitty Puma 6 chip modems, so your better off buying your own. Comcast (Xfinity) Charges $11-$15 a month for modem rental. I know AT&T charges and most other cable ISP's from what I have seen charge a monthly rental fee, im sure most DSL providers also do. 

Well. Given that a modem costs around $30, no one where I live will pay for a $10 monthly modem rental. So they just give it for free and you have to return it when you no longer want the connection (otherwise they will not return the deposit, which is usually lower than the cost of the modem). We don't have cable ISPs here so I don't know how much a cable modem costs.

[Donut417]

5 hours ago, Trinopoty said:

Well. Given that a modem costs around $30, no one where I live will pay for a $10 monthly modem rental. So they just give it for free and you have to return it when you no longer want the connection (otherwise they will not return the deposit, which is usually lower than the cost of the modem). We don't have cable ISPs here so I don't know how much a cable modem costs.

Cable modems range is price from like $40 to $200. It comes down to how fast of service you want the modem to support. ISP in general in the US will nickle and dime you in to poverty. Not only do we pay modem rental fees, Comcast also has a broadcast TV fee, sports fees, and Box/DVR fees. Before we dropped TV we had like over $40 in fees and that was just cable boxes. Not counting the other fees, which seem to go up yearly. 

 

Me and the OP have the same ISP. They are a bunch of greedy bastards. But their network is fairly solid, at least in my area.