Internet: cable vs. DSL

[bevo barry]

Getting ready to move to Albuquerque in the not-so-distant future. Unfortunately, neither U-Verse nor FiOS services Albuquerque, or at least they don't service the particular neighborhood I'm locating to. The cable Internet provider there is Comcast...don't have any personal experience with them, though I have read bad comments about their TV service before. Qwest is the local phone company, and they have a fairly reasonably priced bundle for a landline phone (which my missus insists on), DSL Internet, and DirecTV. I use the Net just for surfing, and I will be downloading music, but at this time I don't plan to stream any movies. Any big downsides to DSL Internet as compared to cable? Thanks!

 

[wherzwaldo]

Cable pros: faster maximum speeds, newer technology with more upside
Cable cons: sharing bandwidth with other cable customers, sometimes more expensive than DSL

DSL pros: some plans are cheaper than cable for basic usage, your speeds aren't affected by other customers' usage
DSL cons: slower max speeds, likely higher $/megabit, use of old telephone infrastructure can sometimes introduce problems (old wiring, etc.)


I have had both throughout the years (all in Austin - Time Warner and AT&T, including Uverse) and I have universally had a better experience with cable over DSL. However, your mileage may vary, and a lot of it depends on the local providers and the wiring in your neighborhood/house.

 

[Dionysus]

I agree with wherzwaldo's assessment of things. Cable has been pretty good for me. Downtime on the circuit has been very rare, a little more common with DSL though.

 

[pulque]

Cable is wonderful, however Comcast is suck