So, you’ve finally signed up for your DSL service, and you’re impressed by how much faster you can access the Internet than when you had dial-up. Downloads are quick and easy and you’ve added more songs to your music library in the last 20 minutes than you have in the last month.
But just how fast is your connection? How does it compare to your next-door-neighbors’?
Answers to these questions can be obtained by conducting some simple DSL speed checks. Speed tests are available online. Some of them can be downloaded, and some of them merely require you to fill in what type of connection you have and then click on a button and the program will determine your computer’s speed automatically. For example, one site you can visit is Bandwidth Place. This site only requires you to tell it what type of Internet connection you have, and what part of the world you live in, and when you press the “Send” button, the program automatically calculates how fast your Internet connection is.
Understanding Your DSL Speed Check Results
If you take a DSL speed check test on this site, your results will look like something displayed on the page. The middle column displays the speeds for various connection types ranging from dial-up to extremely fast T1 and T3 connections. The area you want to be concerned with is the red bar – this represents the speed of your Internet connection. Basically, everything below the red line is a faster connection than the one you have, and everything above it is a slower connection.
So, if you have a cable connection, and the red bar comes in at a similar speed to the shown cable connection speeds, then the DSL tester is telling you that your connection speed is fine. If, however, you have a cable connection, and the red bar shows up near the dial-up speeds, then you have a connection speed problem that needs to be addressed.
Different Types of DSL Tester Checks
The test described below can be completed in seconds or minutes, depending upon the type of connection you have. However, there are other DSL tester checks you can take that are more advanced and in-depth. For example, some tests require you to download some software, and the program will check the speed of your connection over a period of time, say days or weeks. This type of test will give you a better idea about whether or not your connection speed slows down at certain times of the day.
