Am I being misinformed by Suddenlink?

[Blckhaze]

Hi, currently I have a 6mbps DSL line from AT&T and I am looking for a faster internet connection. After 40 minutes of being on the phone with AT&T, ruling out Uverse, we came to the conclusion that I had the best they offered. So I called Suddenlink cable company and asked them what they had that would be faster than AT&T's 6mb DSL line, and they said their 3mb cable line is going to be 5x faster than the 6mb DSL line because of how it travels through fiber optics.

The rep didn't appear to know too much technical information because I asked is the 3mb mean megabyte or megabit, (i think AT&T is 6 megabit) and she said its in bytes. Does that mean 8 bit = 1 byte, and 3mbyte cable = 4 times faster than 6 mbit DSL? Is that why she said 5 times faster? Or am I being mislead for the sake of business competition?

Thanks

 

[Guest]

Cable can be faster than DSL, though it depends how many users are in the loop at any one time.

Bearing in mind that all advertised speeds are qualified with the magic phrase "up to" I doubt if you'll experience much difference between a good 3 mbps (megabits per second) and an up to 6mbps on a bad day.

Both types of service are currently claiming up to 20mbps in the UK -- which has an only reasonable infrastructure I suspect -- and some counrtries are aiming to give everyone 50mbps.

However if you are in a rural area speeds and availability of service may be less than in urban areas.


Still, you'll have fun thinking up insulting variations on the name Suddenlink if you take up their offer and it proves less than reliable.

 

[Suddenlink Help]

Hi, currently I have a 6mbps DSL line from AT&T and I am looking for a faster internet connection. After 40 minutes of being on the phone with AT&T, ruling out Uverse, we came to the conclusion that I had the best they offered. So I called Suddenlink cable company and asked them what they had that would be faster than AT&T's 6mb DSL line, and they said their 3mb cable line is going to be 5x faster than the 6mb DSL line because of how it travels through fiber optics.

The rep didn't appear to know too much technical information because I asked is the 3mb mean megabyte or megabit, (i think AT&T is 6 megabit) and she said its in bytes. Does that mean 8 bit = 1 byte, and 3mbyte cable = 4 times faster than 6 mbit DSL? Is that why she said 5 times faster? Or am I being mislead for the sake of business competition?

Thanks

Hi - My name is Tina and I am with Suddenlink. If you would like additional information on the services we offer in your area, I would be happy to help. Once I know the address you are looking to recieve the services at, I can better notify you if we have an internet speed that would provide you with a faster connection than the 6 mbps DSL you currently receive from AT&T. Feel free to contact me at tina-AT-suddenlink-DOT-com. Thanks!

 

[Blckhaze]

Thanks for the replies!
I called suddenlink back and this time I talked with tech support and the guy I talked with confirmed that the area I am in has only up to 3 mBIT and it is in bits and not bytes, and that currently DSL is probably faster because they have a better "infastructure" on this town than the newer arrived cable company. He did say that in other towns, usually cable is alot faster.. but not in my case.

Rockdale, Texas, 76567.

thanks