Cable vs Fibre

Why should my business upgrade from cable (coax) Internet to Fibre Optic Internet?

I’ve heard variations of this question many times over my career.

And my initial response is usually the same: you more than likely don’t.

If your business only requires basic download connectivity for web surfing and email, doesn’t utilize real-time applications like voice and video, hosts nothing in the cloud that needs reliable upload speeds and doesn’t require bandwidth higher then 1 Gbps, then you probably don’t need to upgrade from cable (coax).

However, if even one of these resonated with you, then you owe it to yourself to compare the two options.

Fibre Optic Internet vs. Cable (Coax) Internet

Aside from the basic physics and its inherent limitations – light travelling through glass vs. an electrical signal travelling through a copper wire – there are big differences between the two media types that all business owners need to compare and review before making an important decision like this.

Ultimately, you need to ask yourself a few very simple questions:

How vital is connectivity to my business?

• What mission critical applications solely depend on a reliable and stable connection?

Or conversely, how has unreliable and instable connectivity negatively impacted my business?

• What technologies and applications have been delayed because of network constraints?

If you want to know more about the benefits of fibre optic connectivity, contact sales@flexnetworks.ca.

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1)  Cable companies typically utilize statistical multiplexing as a bandwidth sharing technique to distribute bandwidth fairly and provide an adequate level of service at an acceptable price. However, the operator must monitor usage patterns and scale the network appropriately, to ensure that customers receive adequate service even during peak-usage times. If the network operator does not provide enough bandwidth for a service area, the connection could become saturated, negatively impacting speeds or drop users out completely. Operators have been known to use bandwidth throttling techniques to limit users’ download during peak times, if they have downloaded a large amount of data that day.