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If there’s a type of internet connection that has set a bar, way above the rest then that’s got to be fiber internet. Fiber optic internet connection has built a sound reputation for being the gold standard for residential internet connections. In the USA, an estimated 1575 internet providers are offering fiber-centric services. Currently, USA’s fiber internet is led by AT&T, CenturyLink, MetroNet, Xfinity, and other prominent names in the run.
Fiber internet is fast, reliable, and capable of whooshing through your daily online activities. Fiber optic cables consist of minuscule glass strands, enveloped within a special sheathe called cladding. Fiber internet is unbeatable for its immaculately fast data transfer. Data transmitted and received via a network consisting of fiber travels at the speed of light. Though light pulses travel 31% slower via fiber optic cables, the results are still unprecedented. Relatively, the data transferred via cable and DSL poses sluggishness and sometimes, throttles too.
The fiber internet speeds that you’d typically come across range from 50 Mbps all the way up to 1000 Mbps. A few American providers go the extra mile and offer multi-gig speeds. For instance, AT&T has recently rolled out fiber optic internet speeds up to 5000 Mbps in select markets. The top American provider has managed to achieve this milestone based on the latest FTTH – Fiber To The Home – deployment. With this, users can enjoy 4K streaming, blazing-fast file-sharing, and other bandwidth-intensive activities.
Our needs have amplified over time. There was a time when the creaky, old dial-up internet seemed like it was enough. But, things are different now. We need a robust broadband connection that would not only hook us up with substantial speeds but also, won’t flinch when we put it to use.
While we are 100% sure that fiber internet will resolve all of the bottlenecks that we experience due to slow internet connection. It’s still not as readily available as it should be. Overall in the US, the availability of fiber internet is in dire need of attention. The high deployment costs are the reason why a handful of major American metropolises still lack fiber internet infrastructure. For instance, Rhode Island, and the District of Columbia are the only two states with a substantial fiber internet coverage rate. The rest of the 48 states are still far from being fully fiber-connected. Don’t worry, we’ll give you an insight into the coverage later in this piece.
There are three types of fiber optic internet connections that you may have seen most providers claiming to offer.
Now, let’s take a quick glance over each type.
FTTH – or FTTP – is the fastest type of fiber internet. FTTH stands for ‘Fiber To The Home’. This type ensures that the users get a fiber internet connection straight to their home, with nothing in the way.
FTTC – ‘Fiber To The Curb’ is another type available. This one demonstrates a bit slower connectivity because 100% pure fiber is only found in the utility node outside your residence. The rest of the connection, from the provider node to the residence, consists of copper.
FTTN – And lastly, ‘Fiber To The Neighborhood’ is the slowest of all three types. That’s because fiber optic remains restricted within one mile from the user’s residence. The longer distance adds to the reason why the users experience slower connectivity.
Fiber optic internet is a tough cookie to beat in terms of reliability, ping rates, and most importantly, speed. If for whatever reason, you’re finding it hard to switch your current cable, DSL, or satellite connection to fiber, then don’t worry. We’re here to save the day. We’ll walk you through all the advantages that fiber optic internet packages possess:
Fiber optic internet speed is capable of whooshing up to 1 GBPS. Relative to cable, 1 GBPS is almost 20 times faster, and 80 times faster when compared with DSL. To give you a better comparison, here’s something. With a fiber optic internet connection, you can download a 2-hour movie in 40 seconds. On the other hand, cable internet would download the same movie in about 7 minutes and DSL internet would take about 30 minutes to download. All in all, fiber optic internet is a clear winner when it comes to speed.
Imagine, the nerve of a connection that gets spotty right when things are about to get intense while playing God of War. That’s why you deserve a connection that remains strong while you’re busy carrying out bandwidth-intensive activities. Fiber internet demonstrates great consistency. You can enjoy HD video streaming, gaming, and other activities without incurring peak traffic overloads. Plus, you won’t even have to worry about prolonged connection outages.
You can’t judge a book by its cover, but you can most certainly judge the integrity of your internet connection with its performance during peak hours. Peak times are usually, heavily criticized. During this time, ISPs lower the speed to ration their internet service and what happens at the user-end is nothing short of a nightmare. Fiber optic internet does not throttle and it’s far less susceptible to peak time overloads.
This one is hands down our favorite advantage of the entire lot! While cable internet claims to shoot up to 1000 Mbps and higher. Let’s not forget that it will forever have significantly less upload speeds. Fiber optic internet connection, on the other hand, not only delivers higher downloads but it gets you matching upload speeds as well. We’re talking download and upload speeds up to 1000 Mbps, people!
A few ISPs are even going the extra mile in delivering higher speeds. AT&T for instance has recently rolled out symmetrical speeds up to 5000 Mbps. Xfinity though is primarily a cable internet provider, its Gigabit Pro plan offers 3000 Mbps symmetrical speeds in select markets. You heard it! If it’s available near you and your needs are much higher, then there’s no other bet better than this one.
We’re not saying that your cable broadband connection will not deliver you ‘that brilliant 4K’ experience. But, you can’t simply ignore the gritty display that traditional cable broadband often resorts to, especially when you’re streaming. Good thing fiber optic is around to take care of your intensive HD streaming needs. In fact, keeping a fiber connection by your side will make investing in the latest 4K TV all the more worthwhile. You’d be able to enjoy movies, TV shows and so much more in 4K, without incurring any grittiness in the display.
Now that we've given you enough reasons that make fiber optic internet the best one out there. It’s time to pivot towards an equally important thing – knowing which providers offer fiber internet service. Before we find that out, let’s acquaint ourselves with fiber optic internet’s statistical background.
Albeit, fiber internet is second-to-none in terms of being the fastest, most reliable type of internet connection, its scattered availability always gets in the way. As of now, fiber optic internet covers 43% of US households. We’re keeping our fingers crossed in hopes for this rate to increase because fast and reliable internet connectivity is what everybody needs and should be made available to a higher number of neighborhoods.
Anyways, let’s revert back to our original discussion – getting to know USA’s top fiber internet providers. It’s true that you may have to check for the availability of these providers in your ZIP code first. Once you’ve found the one available at your address, then don’t waste a second and spoil yourself with super-fast download speeds and all the other perks that fiber internet brings along.
Unfortunately, fiber internet providers are far less in numbers with equally less coverage than cable. So if you are thinking that “I don’t have fiber optic internet near me”, then the following fiber-powered cable internet providers may come to your rescue with their gigabit download speeds.
Astound Broadband powered by RCN
The key infrastructure needed for fiber optic internet has been seeing – not substantial – but some expansions throughout the States. Cities, where the administration is ready to chip in an investment, are the ones where fiber internet is a common choice for the residents. Relatively, the cities where investments are minimal and there are a handful of complex state laws in the play, are the ones where fiber internet is barely available.
If you’re willing to get a better insight into fiber internet availability by state, then here’s something for you. We’re jotting below all the states in the US and the rate at which fiber internet is available to the population. If you’re wondering what’s the rate of fiber internet in your state, then this should help you:
|
State |
Availability Rate % |
|
Alaska |
10.8% |
|
Arizona |
20.9% |
|
Arkansas |
29.1% |
|
California |
36.1% |
|
Colorado |
40.3% |
|
Connecticut |
10.6% |
|
Delaware |
56.6% |
|
District of Columbia |
74.8% |
|
Florida |
40.9% |
|
Georgia |
51.0% |
|
Hawaii |
58.5% |
|
Idaho |
29.0% |
|
Illinois |
21.4% |
|
Indiana |
39.7% |
|
Iowa |
46.9% |
|
Kansas |
43.0% |
|
Alabama |
40.6% |
|
Kentucky |
49.4% |
|
Louisiana |
41.2% |
|
Maine |
10.5% |
|
Maryland |
62.7% |
|
Massachusetts |
43.6% |
|
Michigan |
29.5% |
|
Minnesota |
36.9% |
|
Mississippi |
20.0% |
|
Missouri |
36.5% |
|
Montana |
20.5% |
|
Nebraska |
46.3% |
|
Nevada |
25.7% |
|
New Hampshire |
31.9% |
|
New Jersey |
68.7% |
|
New Mexico |
20.8% |
|
New York |
64.8% |
|
North Carolina |
41.7% |
|
North Dakota |
48.9% |
|
Ohio |
27.4% |
|
Oklahoma |
27.4% |
|
Oregon |
53.1% |
|
Pennsylvania |
45.7% |
|
Puerto Rico |
0.7% |
|
Rhode Island |
84.2% |
|
South Carolina |
36.1% |
|
South Dakota |
38.0% |
|
Tennessee |
50.6% |
|
Texas |
43.7% |
|
Utah |
56.2% |
|
Vermont |
24.5% |
|
Virginia |
51.8% |
|
Washington |
47.4% |
|
West Virginia |
4.8% |
|
Wisconsin |
23.5% |
|
Wyoming |
16.7% |
Fiber optic internet truly gives all the other types of connections a run for the money. You get super-fast speed: 20 times faster than traditional cable, and prices aren’t too steep either. If you want to find out about hot fiber internet offers in your area, then feel free to dial 1-855-349-9328. The BuyTVInternetPhone customer service team will help you pick the right fiber internet package for your home, so you can save a ton of your time.
What are the cons of fiber internet?
Fiber optic is very delicate, hence, it’s vulnerable to damage due to physical strain, temperature, and weather. Plus, the biggest con according to us has got to be its scarce availability all over the US.
Does fiber internet slow down?
Fiber internet is the fastest kind of internet out there. It seldom slows down and offers you great reliability, especially when you’re carrying out bandwidth-intensive tasks.