I want this! I am not willing to pay the price, however.
Verizon has started rolling out what it says is the fastest mass-market in-home broadband service in the United States. The new service, introduced yesterday, will deliver download speeds of 150 megabits per second and upload speeds of 35 megabits over Verizon's existing all-fiber-optic FiOS network. The company will not need to string any new wires or fiber optics.
In comparison, typical DSL connections vary from about 256 kilobits (0.256 megabits) to 768 kilobits (0.768 megabits) per second. Cable modems range from 1 megabits/second to 6 megabits/second, depending upon what you select from your cable modem provider. All of those numbers are for download speeds. Upload speeds typically are about one-fourth to one-third of the download speeds. When I had a cable modem, I selected 5 megabits/second, and I paid an extra $10 a month for the increased speed.
Verizon's present fiber optic speeds are typically 10 megabits/second, and the company also offers faster speeds for more money. Monday's announcement simply says that Verizon is adding one more option: even higher speeds of 150 megabits/second.
If you do the math, that says that the new Verizon option will be 15 to 600 times faster than your present broadband connection!
With the new service, Verizon says customers can download a two-hour, standard-definition movie, which is typically 1.5 gigabytes, in less than 80 seconds. A two-hour high-definition movie, typically 5 gigabytes, can be downloaded in four and a half minutes. Downloading 20 high-resolution photos, a total of 100 MB, would take less than five and a half seconds, while uploading the same number of photos would take less than 23 seconds.
There is but one drawback: the price. Verizon will charge $195 a month for the new 150 megabit/second connection, and it is only available when purchased with a one-year service agreement and wire line voice service.
Ouch! I think I'll pass. However, history shows that prices always drop on Internet connection speeds over time. Maybe in a few years after the price comes down...
Verizon's other broadband connections start at $19.95/month for 768 megabit/second DSL and go up to $49.99/month for a 10 to 15 megabit/second connection. Details may be found at http://goo.gl/DvikU
If you would like to test the speed of your present Internet connection, you can find a number of online sites that will perform a test. I normally use http://www.speakeasy.net/speedtest/ but you can find a number of others if you start at http://goo.gl/Hfthy
