Broad-er Band

A speed test result of 1488 KB/Sec with my new modem. A more "real world" test results in the 800 KB/Sec ballpark.

I just got a speed boost to my internet connection by switching out my 6 year old 3COM "shark fin" cable modem for a Motorola "SURFboard" cable modem. Since I live on Long Island, the broadband service I subscribe to is Optimum Online. They are run by Cablevision and also provide cable TV service for our area. We had been having some problems with their iO digital cable television service and it made me wonder if the cause of that problem was related to my slow internet connection. The premium channels are sent to our cable TV box in a compressed format, then decompressed and sent to the TV via the set top box. This works similarly to the way AVI, MPEG and Quicktime MOV files work on your computer. There is a compromise though as far as color fidelity in dark images and graduated areas of color. Some "stair stepping" occurs due to the compression process. Then there is the other problem we were having... network stall.

One frame of video would just freeze on the screen for several seconds while the audio would continue. Usually this frame showed the blocky artifacts of the MPEG compression. After 5 or 10 seconds, the picture would reset itself. Other times, we had to change the channel to "unfreeze" the picture. This was unacceptable, especially at the prices they charge for service. We had a service guy come out and swap out the line from the pole to the house and he re-programmed our box for better efficiency (supposedly). I was thinking that this service call would solve my internet woes. No luck though!

Speed testing of my broadband data transfer rate resulted in readings of 300 KB/sec to 500 KB/sec on a good day. On a bad day, the test wouldn't break 200 KB/sec! Those readings were from a server located near to me in New York City and should have been a very efficient connection. I started to suspect that my aging modem was dying. I started to feel that I needed to put it out of its misery when it had a hard time playing the little jingle that it would when connecting to the internet after being reset. Eventually it just started making a series of clicks and beeps. It sounded so pitiful. Something was definately wrong with it.


The 3Com Shark Fin cable modem

My brother, who's computer is currently being repaired, has a fairly new cable modem so I asked him if I could try his out while his computer is being overhauled. He brought it over and BINGO! My transfer speed more than doubled. Went down to cablevision the next day and swapped out the old modem for a new model and have been enjoying transfer speeds upwards of 900 KB/sec. There are times when it test out at 1300KB/sec, but I don't believe that is really a "true" reading. I am using a speed test provided by www.speakeasy.net for their broadband subscribers. I am testing transfer to a server located relatively close to my home - that right there will do a lot to increase the data transfer efficiency. Also, the reading given is the highest that was achieved in the 10 second testing period, not an average. Other tests to more distant servers in the U.S. result in readings from 600 KB/sec to around 800 KB/sec. Still much better than before.


My new Motorola SURFboard cable modem

I have become really addicted to having "always on" internet access and as a result, I've been paying through the nose each month for over 6 years for cable broadband. Most of my computer time at home is spent surfing the 'net for information regarding my hobbies or reading internet message boards. I have gotten so used to "dotting up" as my nephew calls it. Any question I have, from the weather report to movie times, can be instantly answered via the internet. Then there are other fun things to do like working on this blog, listening to internet radio, watching movie trailers, ordering things online and sending e-mails to my friends. Cable internet service is worth the money in my opinion. I am running an ancient Compaq 900Mhz machine with about 700MB of RAM and it works great for surfing the internet. It even performs pretty well when doing some graphic design work at home. I keep the machine "clean" and maintained and I have definately gotten my money's worth out of it even though I have had to replace the hard drive twice in 6 years.

My broadband just got broad-er and I am a happy camper!