The transition from ADSL to fiber optics is definitive in most places in Spain, except in those rural areas where fiber does not reach. Be that as it may, before hiring fiber optic at your home, you should know a few concepts since not all fiber optic connections are the same.
ADSL and fiber offer us an Internet connection, yes, but not the same speed, not even close. That speed will be determined by the connection we have at our home, and that is that with fiber optics the speed will be much higher as it has less latency, while with ADSL we will obtain a speed 100 times lower than with fiber.
While ADSL usually has quite a few connection cuts with the service / switchboard that emits the signal, the fiber is always available when traveling through flexible fiber optic cables. And it is always better to choose fiber before ADSL if the area in which we live and the operator that supplies us allows us that option.
Fiber optic types
Once the choice is made, we should know that there are two types of fiber: the symmetric and asymmetric. Depending on which one we choose, the connection speed will also vary. Now the concept of upload and download speed comes into play, that is, uploading files to the Internet and downloading them. What does each one offer us or which one is better?
Symmetric fiber
With this type of fiber, the upload and download speed will be equal and constant at all times. Whether we upload files or download them, the speed will not change at any time, which guarantees us to be able to use cloud services and send large files under the same conditions as downloading a large file or watching streaming services, for example.
Asymmetric fiber
Here things change. Does not have the same download or upload speed. It will offer us greater speed to download, yes, but it will not offer us as much to upload or upload files to the network. The speed will not be constant in the upload and download of files, documents, or whatever.
This connection is the most common in homes, since, commonly, users download more than upload files. If you are one of those who do not use the cloud, or send large files constantly, this option is for you, because in addition to being cheaper, it has a higher download speed than symmetric fiber. As we say, as a general rule, users consume more information than they upload.
So which one to choose?
Well. It all depends on the type of user you’ll be. Symmetric internet connections are advisable for companies or people who dedicate their activity to creating content, uploading to the Internet, broadcasting in streaming … Because you have to bear in mind that, if for example you have contracted an asymmetric fiber of 100 Mb / s , of that amount, you will get 10% to upload, issue …
If, on the other hand, you are going to do a domestic use‘How to consume content from platforms such as YouTube, Twitch, download files, read web pages … You will not need symmetric fiber at all because you will not upload content, however, you will need more download than download than upload, so the best it will be the asymmetric grain.