cable speed: 384K vs 3 Megs?

theres a $10 difference with charter depending on the speed i want -- what is the biggest differene really? is it worth it to spend the extra bucks or will 384K suffice? and is there a way to determine how fast i'm running now?

i did an online bandwith speed test and results show i transfer 2 megabits per second.. if that helps...


thanks

 

BAM,

I guess that would depend on how much you are on the Internet and how long you want to stay on. I have Charter's 3 Meg service and the speed is great. I am not always able to get on for long periods of time and like the fact that I can get in and out in a hurry. If time constraints aren't a problem, I would think that 384k would be fine. You could always try it for a couple months then downgrade if you decide differently.

Mike

 

mike,

i guess im confused when you say you're not always able to get on for long periods of time -- with cable i am always connected so im "off and on" meaning opening my browser several times a day... so its important, but not sure what you mean by how long i need to stay "on" for...

which is faster (more expensive?)


thanks
blaine

 

BAM--Based on the speed test you have run you now get 2Mbps download. So 3Mbps download is 50% faster. If you do a lot of downloading of files to your hard drive, you may like that. Your surfing speed will really not be too noticeably improved.
384K sounds like 384KB. Note the B. A B (byte) is equal to eight bits.

 

BAM,

Sorry about the confusion. Sometimes, I only have about 5 minutes to check through things online as opposed to having 30-45 minutes to sit at the computer and take my time looking around. The faster speed helps with the short times. Like Welshjim mentioned, if you download allot or large files, you will like the extra speed. If you visit sites with lots of graphics, the speed will be nice also. I will say that I did notice the difference in surfing the net when I went from 1M to 3M.

Mike

 

OKay so clearly 3 MB offered is greater (thus more expensive) than the 384 offered -- i do some downloading (updates for things mostly), but usually just surfing...

how does the 384 (that i'm being offered) compare to the 2 Mbs that i tested for in this area?..

i'm thinking the 384 would be okay (and im really trying to save money where possible), but if its considerably slower than 2 mbs i may not want to risk it -- i enjoy the speed ihave at home right now... i'd like to keep something as compatible when i move...

 

BAM--Please re-read my earlier post.
384KB is equal to 3Mb. (Factor is 8.)
So why is your cable provider suggesting that their 3M service is better than the 2M service you are already getting? That is because advertised speeds are for ideal circumstances. If you are already getting actual 2Mb download speeds and do not often download files, I doubt you will see much difference for the additional $10. There is no "risk" here. I suspect you can upgrade at any time if you wish, and then roll back if your experience does not justify the cost. Check that out. But my suspicion is that you will be happy just staying where you are--UNLESS the cable company will cut back your present speed when they offer the new.
And all the above assumes my assumption that when you say 384KB and 2Mb, you have the case of the "b/B" correct.

 

Please bear with me -- I am horrible at deciphering the kb/MB stuff...

You said:
<<384KB is equal to 3Mb. (Factor is 8.) >>

What does this mean? If 384 KB is equal to 3Mb then why are they different prices?? No one from Charter was suggesting that 3Mbs is better than my current speed -- I didn't even get into that with them. I was just getting general pricing and information. But now I'm overly confused, I'm understanding this to be that they're advertising equivalent speeds at diferent prices?

Can you please explain this in realllly simple terms -- without using KBs and Mbs -- percentages, any other analogys would be great...

thanks, sorry I'm slow

 

BAM,

I don't want to speak for Welshjim, but I think what he is trying to say is that the 3Mbs service would be about 8 times faster then the 384Kb service you have now. Charter is not offering the same service at different prices. Could be that they just increased everyone's speed for a short time to try and sell the higher speed to more people. They did that here. I had 1Mbs service and they gave me the 3Mbs service for about 4 months. If you are trying to keep costs low and you mainly just surf, the 384Kb service will be just fine for you. Especially if you consistently get 2Mbs speed now. In your case, I would not upgrade to faster service. If you get into more downloading of large programs and files, then the faster service may interest you. Hope that helps a little.

Mike

 

AH! Well if that's the case --

MUCH clearer!!! Thank you so much Mike.. No offense to anyone, I'm just super slow..

Okay so last clarifying question then: it seems that the 2 Mbs I'm currently on and the 384K advertised are very similar in speed, right? If I took the 384 would I be downgrading from 2 Mbs and by how much (or little)?

I don't use the Web for anything major -- like I said, email, surfing.. when you say "large downloads" I'm not sure what you really mean, but because I don't quite know I assume that means I don't partake.. the largest "things" I download are updates for programs --- not sure where the cutoff is for large downloads and small downloads...


Thanks Again!
Blaine

 

BAM-- I am not saying that 3Mbps is eight times faster than 384KBps. Since one Byte (B) is eight bits (b), 384KBps is mathematically the same as 3Mbps.
However, as stated in one of my earlier posts, it was I that assumed you meant 384KBps when you said 384K in your first post. If you mean 384Kbps, then dividing 2Mbps by 384Kbps, 2Mbps is over five times faster than 384Kbps. And 3Mbps would be almost eight times faster than 384Kbps.
From your first post, you say you measured bandwidth speed and determined it was 2Mbps. So if you are paying for 384Kbps download speed and getting 2Mbps, you have a good deal. I would not touch a thing until the cable company changes the situation.
P.S. K=1,000, M=1,000,000, so 1M is 1000K. (k or m are the same, not like B vs. b, but normally people capitalize K and M. And Meg=Mega=M=million=1,000,000)
P.P.S. All the discussion about the numbers is somewhat theoretical. Actual download speeds will vary depending on time of day, site you accessing (how busy it is), how many subscribers on the same line are using the bandwidth, etc. But if you consistently get less than you pay for, you should complain.

 

Welshjim,

I apologize for misspeaking your point there. Having Charter also, I know that BAM is talking about their 384Kbps service compared to 3Mbps.

BAM,

I'm sure nobody has taken offense. It's always better to fully understand something so that you can make the right decision for yourself. If you drop from the 2Mbps service to the 384Kbps, it would be about 5 times slower. As Welshjim mentions, allot of factors can change that number. Surfing at night will be slower then during the day just because of the number of people on the Internet. For what you do, I would bet that 384Kbps will work just fine for you. If, down the road, you find it isn't fast enough, upgrade your service. As far as the large files, I consider anything over 10MB a large download. Everyone has a different size in mind that they consider large. Doing program updates will go fast enough with 384Kbps.

Mike