Someone wise once said that a person cannot truly appreciate fast Internet until he or she has been without it. But what about the countless rural households who've never had access to broadband options, who are still outside the cable and DSL grid? Dial-up users and rural high speed Internet seekers need not fret: hope may be more than a distant gleam on the horizon. Rescue may have already arrived in the form of one of these rural high speed Internet options, listed in order of the likelihood of availability.
Satellite Internet Systems
Satellite Internet systems have an established history with rural America. Of all the rural high speed Internet options it has been around the longest and is by far the most widely available--literally anywhere on the planet with a clear view to a given company's satellite in orbit. However, satellite Internet comes with some significant disadvantages:
- Satellite's overall speed is quite high, but its latency is as well. Data transmitted over satellite Internet is received and sent (downloaded and uploaded) in large bursts, meaning that use of any programs requiring real-time updates--VoIP, online games (especially MMOs), and instant messaging programs, just to name a few--will be problematic at best.
- Most satellite Internet service providers oversubscribe their networks. If all those users downloaded to their heart's content, the ISP's connection would be bogged down to a halt, making already high latencies unbearable. To counteract this, most satellite Internet providers have enacted a Fair Access Policy, which is really code for bandwidth limiting. The rules of these limitations vary from ISP to ISP, but usually result in significantly lowered speeds if a set daily or weekly bandwidth limit is reached.
- And, of course, we can't forget the considerable upfront equipment, installation, and account setup costs of new satellite Internet connections, sometimes as little as $100, but often much more.
Still, the price that satellite Internet service providers ask has gone down over the years. From time to time, some ISPs offer special subscription packages for as low as about $40 a month. Learn about how satellite Internet systems work.
Mobile Broadband: Cell Phone Internet Access for the Computer
Mobile broadband, sometimes called 3G or EV-DO, is basically cell phone Internet access for the computer--it will use the same cellular tower as a cell phone. Although mobile broadband was intended for use in a mobile environment, it has also provided many rural Americans with a new broadband Internet alternative--all that's needed is decent cell phone reception. And the better the reception, the faster the speeds will be. Prices tend to be a bit higher than satellite (although not by much), and availability is not as widespread, but mobile broadband has some significant advantages over satellite:
- Mobile broadband connections are able to achieve much lower latency than satellite connections, so real-time pursuits like VoIP, gaming, and instant messaging programs should work just fine.
- Although mobile broadband companies do limit download capacity based on subscription plan, they do not practice the same bandwidth limiting practices that satellite Internet service providers do.
- Most cell phone carriers who provide mobile broadband options offer the hardware, a small USB device called an aircard, which is slightly larger than a flash drive, for free with a two-year agreement.
The added benefit of mobility is not to be scoffed at either: it's pretty cool, not to mention handy, to be surfing the Internet on a laptop while riding down the road.
Rural Wireless Internet
Not to be confused with WiFi, the short-range wireless technology often used in home networks, wireless Internet, sometimes called Wireless ISP or WISP, is another possible rural high speed Internet option. If an ISP is located near enough to a rural area, someone from the ISP can check that line of sight from a house to their wireless tower is not blocked; other houses, hills, and even large trees can reduce or block signals. If everything checks out, wireless Internet is likely a superior option to either satellite or mobile broadband: monthly subscription prices should be lower, download and bandwidth limiting should be nonexistent, and latency shouldn't be an issue either.
Also, keep an eye on the emerging technology, WiMax, an upgraded version of wireless Internet capable of speeds comparable to cable and DSL at distances of up to 30 miles. It has the added benefit of not requiring line of sight, making WiMax ISPs a popular contender for the premier rural high speed Internet provider in years to come.
Rural DSL
Digital subscriber line, more commonly shortened to DSL, is the least likely of broadband options to be available for rural Americans because of its high cost of installation. However, those only just outside town or just barely in the country--in particular around three miles or less (the maximum reach of a strong DSL signal)--should check to see if DSL is available. DSL will most likely be the best and cheapest rural high speed Internet option if it is available.
Michael Hintz - Michael Hintz is a technically-inclined writer with a great appreciation for technology and nature alike. Having graduated in December ...
