Don't feel like you're getting what you pay for with your internet speeds?
As promised, we’re demystifying some of the common misconceptions (and frustrations!) about internet service and bandwidth.
Let’s dive right in and debunk the biggest misconception about bandwidth!
#1 The Device Dilemma
When you sign up for internet service and are assigned a certain internet speed, you might think that speed correlates with every device at your home or business.
In fact, that speed is what your home or business has overall, not for each device. Your devices are sharing a piece of that bandwidth - the more devices, the more drain on your bandwidth.
Your internet speed can also vary depending on what devices are being used and the quantity of the devices.
For example, one of the things that uses the most bandwidth is streaming, whether it be watching the latest superhero movie, TV shows from Netflix\Hulu, or even online music.
Remember, most internet applications like email and web browsing only need a minuscule amount of bandwidth to function, where streaming, gaming, and video takes a lot of bandwidth.
You can think of bandwidth as a hot water heater. The heater can only hold a finite amount of hot water at any given time. If one source is running, it will not be a problem, and you can run it for a long time.
If you have more of a hot water need, or you run many sources, it will drain the hot water reservoir faster. Also, if you have a larger source of water flow, it too will run the amount in the reservoir out quicker. While bandwidth is not reserved in a reservoir, the same principle applies - the more flow or bandwidth usages, the less quality it can deliver to those multiple devices.
That’s an overview of the biggest misconception about bandwidth! Now you can make more informed decisions about how much bandwidth you need.
Remember, we’re here to help! If there’s anything we can do to make your internet or managed services experience easier, please let us know!
Next time, we’ll tackle another big misconception about bandwidth that has us dusting off equipment from 1999.
