Hacks and Gadgets by HJL

We recently added Comcast internet service at our home. We already have PacBell DSL service here, which we’ve had since 1999 or so when the service was originally launched in the Bay Area. I’ve migrated the non-work subnet onto the Comcast cable internet service, while my office network remains on the DSL service.

I ran the Broadband Reports network speed test a few times for a quick comparison of the delivered bandwidth:

The PacBell DSL service is rated at 1.5mbits down, 384kbits up, tested at 1317 down, 324 up:

The Comcast cable service is rated at 4mbits, 384kbits up, tested at 4620 down, 356 up:

DSL and cable modem access technology have different characteristics, in particular the DSL connection speed is determined by the modem, while the cable modem speed is partly determined by shared traffic on the subscriber’s branch of the cable network. Comcast’s 4mbps product will allow burst traffic at up 6mbps, so you can see higher than rated bandwidth if traffic is light. In contrast, DSL performance tends to be pretty stable.

My preference would have been to change the existing 1.5mbps/384kbps DSL connection to the 6mbps/768kbps service that’s available elsewhere from PacBell/SBC, but I apparently can’t get it in Palo Alto today. The Palo Alto fiber loop runs down Bryant a few hundred yards away, but there’s no convenient ISP for connecting there yet. I haven’t been too excited about getting the Comcast service, as the cable TV service here goes out fairly regularly, in contrast to my DSL line which basically stays up, other than power failures. The higher speed is nice for watching internet video, but I need my VPN and data services to be more stable than what Comcast is providing today. Still looking for a better alternative.