Internet speed is measured in Megabits Per Second or Millions of bits per second. Bits are very small pieces of data. Your internet speed coming out of your modem is measured in Mbps. Locally, Burnt Hills Ballston Lake area, Spectrums lowest speed available is 300 Mbps download and 10 Mbps upload. This lists for around $50 a month your first year, and then they raise it each year for being such a loyal customer! So is that enough? For most of us Yes, more than enough! I have the 300 Mbps service from Spectrum, For a family of two adults and two teenagers its just fine. I rarely exceed 25 Mbps at my home / home office. We watch streaming TV, listen to music, game, surf, the whole nine yards and its plenty. Too much actually, but we can't get a plan for less. So how much do you need? Here is a link to a nice Consumer Reports Article that has a calculator to determine the speed you need. I find it's recommendation is on the upper range of what people need, but its interesting to see.
This is a quote from an article I found online from usnews.com:
"According to the FCC, a good internet speed is at least 12 megabits per second (Mbps) of download speed for two or more connected devices with moderate to heavy internet use and at least 25 Mbps for four or more devices.
For two or more users who regularly stream high definition or 4K video, use videoconferencing, participate in online gaming, or work from home, a good internet speed of 12 to 25 Mbps makes the most sense. Homes with four or more people using four or more connected devices will certainly want download speeds of 25 Mbps or more. That said, most experts recommend even higher speeds – at least 100 Mbps – for households with heavy internet use."
So, if your paying for more and don't know why, you might want to take the time to call and downgrade your service and save a few bucks. If you find its to slow you can always call back and they will be happy to upgrade your service again. Before you do though heres a relavent and funny story:
Several years ago a family member asked me if I could look at her WiFi because it was slow. So I stopped by and the first thing I did was to run a speed test, and it did seem a bit slow. I asked her what Internet speed she pays for and she told me she just upgraded because her computer was slow. She had upgraded to 300 Mbps. She was getting 30 something on her computer. So something was not right, the computer was newer so I looked at her router. It was over 8 years old! At best she was going to get 30 something Mbps from it on a good day. She was trying to pump 300 gallons of water a minute with a garden hose that could handle 30. If you are having issues with speed we can look at your network as a whole and make sure its setup and configured properly, we will make sure your equipment is up to the task and if its not we can come up with a plan based on your needs and get you a written quote for an upgrade. Don't be like my mom, I mean, my family member and over pay for alot of internet speed you will never use. Most homes will never need more than 100 Mbps download speeds.
Cheers,
Tony Long
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