Broadband: Download speed query

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TarfHead

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I have, AFAIK, 1MB landline broadband from BT. Assuming I am the only one on the line, what is the maximum download rate, in kps, possible ?

I accept that in the real world this could never be true. I guess what I am try to establish is what is the (theoretical) highest kps that can be achieved on a 1MB broadband connection ?
 
FutureProof said:
if you go to your router ip it should tell you the actual speed along with the upload speed
Click to expand...
Are you sure? None of the routers that I've used report anything other than the initial sync/connect speed which will just set the bar on what the actual dynamic throughput will be.
 
Thanks
Normally, on my 1MB connection, downloads trundle along, on average, at 50 kps. Recently I have noticed some momentary surges to > 200 kps. I wondered was I somehow getting more bandwidth than I was being charged for. Evidently not :eek:.
 
You are not getting what you are paying for. I would ring BT and get them out asap.
 
I stand to be corrected but you say it "trundles" along at 50kps ( 5% of a 1MB connection) but I reckon it may be 50KBps which is approx (50x8 = 400 kbps) = 40% of a 1 MB connection.
1 Byte = 8 bits
 
It's also worth noting that the quoted speeds 'broadband' is sold at are the -maximum- possible speed, not the 'typical' speed you would expect, particularly with contention ratios (ie: the same 1Mbps is shares about 10, 15, or 50 other customers, so your mileage will vary depending on who else is using the link, and how busy they are)
 
aidan119 said:
I stand to be corrected but you say it "trundles" along at 50kps ( 5% of a 1MB connection) but I reckon it may be 50KBps which is approx (50x8 = 400 kbps) = 40% of a 1 MB connection.
1 Byte = 8 bits
Click to expand...

No - 1mb is approx 1000K - so he is only running at 5% of max speed.
 
Well, 1Mbps is 1000Kbps, but most applications, and your OS, will display downloads in kBps (the first is bits, the latter Bytes).

As there are 8 bits in a byte, a download speed of 50kBps is actually 400kbps.
 
Depending on where and what youre downloading, 50kbps may be ok. If youre downloading P2P stuff then youre limited to what other peers are offering.
If you go to one of the speed test sites listed above you'll get a better idea of what your actual current speed is rather then through P2P or a throttled ftp server somewhere.
Run the speed test at various times of the week, due to contention reasons stated above your 1mb may only get you 200kbps on a monday evening but 500kbps on a sunday morning. This was my experience with a 1mb BT line for last 3 years.
I thought the basic speeds were upped recently so 1mb went to 2 and 2mb to 3? Mine did anyway. check with BT for same. FWIW, The best download speed I ever achieved with a 1mb was around 220kbps.
 
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