subject: The Reason Ethernet Is Usually The Most Cost Effective Selection For Business [print this page] There is lots of hype around with what Ethernet is, and since the term has grown to be popular, even a lot of the cable vendors assert they now provide Ethernet. Although that might be true theoretically speaking, Ethernet from your cable provider continues to be the over-subscribed and over-saturated network that you will get with standard cable service. As the term goes, you can put lipstick on a pig but.
Ethernet solutions from real service providers who offer dedicated connections are not for home use or home businesses, due to the fact the price for 3-4 users can infrequently be justified. But if your business has reached a point where you are thinking about using, or perhaps already are employing a T1 circuit or maybe even a bonded T1 line, and nearly unquestionably if you are using a DS3 or OC-x circuit, Ethernet is certainly a far more economical connectivity alternative.
The not so good news is Ethernet is not offered everywhere. While a T1 line, bonded T1 circuit, as well as generally, a DS3 circuit can be set up just about anywhere you can get a telephone line hooked up through your local phone company, Ethernet just isn't as commonplace. But that said, it really is becoming increasingly obtainable every day across the nation, as well as throughout the world. Ethernet solutions are available in just about every major city today, and if your company is located in or close to a city which has a population of 100k or higher, chances are pretty great that Ethernet alternatives are open to you today.
Really, how much more cost effective is it? A lot of that is determined by what sort of Ethernet you would like to acquire. At the lower end, there is EOC or Ethernet Over Copper, sometimes also referred to as EODS1 or Ethernet Over DS1. Those kinds of circuits, as the name implies, are delivered over copper lines and can start as low as 3 MB. But that 3 MB Ethernet line is most likely going to cost as much as HALF as much as precisely the same bandwidth of a two bonded T1 line. If you actually need a fiber connection, your lowest choice is going to begin at 10 MB Ethernet, but again, that 10 MB Ethernet line will most likely cost about 50 % as much (or perhaps less) as equal bandwidth on a bonded T1 or fractional DS3.
Lets chat for just a moment about copper versus fiber, since this definitely seems to be a point of confusion and more all round misinformation. For a particular amount of bandwidth, for example 10 MB, two circuits both offering 10 MB of bandwidth, one on copper and the other on fiber, will conclude in a dead heat. Fiber is just not faster, despite what many think. But fiber has the ability to be upgraded to higher amounts of bandwidth, although copper actually starts to degrade at higher levels of bandwidth. But at around the 10-15 MB level, even as much as 20 MB in certain major cities, there is NO speed difference between copper and fiber.
If you are searching for your best value for business Ethernet products from responsible and rock-solid carriers who will supply dedicated Internet services to your business with top Service Level Agreements, look into what might be offered in your area from one of the 35+ providers we represent, where we guarantee that the price we offer from those carriers is the lowest that they will offer, even when you go to the provider personally.
