Broadband speeds

Upload vs download

The two main speeds that you’ll be presented with are Upload and Download speeds, which both impact a different aspect of your broadband experience, so it’s important to know exactly what you’re dealing with. 

Download

Your download speed is measured in Mbps (megabits per second) and dictates how fast you can pull data from a server to your devices, essentially impacting how fast and efficient your browsing experience is. Think of your download speed as the number that impacts how quickly you can access data that aren’t already yours and needs to be obtained - streaming movies, browsing your social media, listening to music, and even loading web pages will all be reliant on your download speed. Most broadband packages are designed to optimise download speeds so that they’re much faster than upload speeds as the majority of online activity operates using the downloading of data rather than uploading.

Upload

Alternatively, upload speeds are how fast you are able to send data from yourself to others - this is when you’re performing tasks such as sending files in emails, video calls with friends and family, as well as streaming your gaming experience through platforms such as Twitch. This speed is also measured in Mbps, but don’t be too surprised to see a significant difference between your upload speed and your download speed - it’s designed that way to optimise your experience.

Advertised and typical speeds

Your advertised and typical speeds are the speeds that you can expect to experience at peak times, as provided by your broadband supplier. These speeds are deciphered by finding the advertised speed experienced by at least 50% of customers at peak times, so you can be fairly confident that this speed will be somewhat accurate to what you’ll receive. If your actual speeds are significantly lower than this, your provider has 30 days to rectify this poor performance or you will be able to leave your contract for free as stated by the Voluntary Code of Practice on Broadband Speed.

What speeds will you get with different packages?

There are different levels when it comes to broadband packages, and each provides a different level of speed to the user. The main different packages you’ll find are as follows:

• Fast/Standard Broadband: this will provide you with an average upload speed of 1Mbps and a download speed of 10Mbps - this is probably enough for light users who don’t put too much pressure on their broadband.
• Superfast Broadband: these packages will offer average upload speeds of up to 66Mbps depending on the package you choose, with upload speeds of up to 17Mbps. Speeds such as these are likely to be ideal for medium usage households watching HD movies and partaking in some online gaming.
• Ultrafast Broadband: with download speeds hitting 900Mbps, this is the pinnacle of home broadband at the moment. Giving you access to almost instant downloads of high quality movies and seamless browsing experiences, Ultrafast Broadband packages are perfect for even the most tech-savvy homes.
• Gigabit Broadband: whilst this is still in its early stages in most of the UK, the initial signs have been immensely promising, with Gigabit Broadband offering some homes and businesses speeds of up to 1000Mbps download, a previously unheard of feat. With speeds these fast, nothing can stand in the way of a faultless internet experience.

Slow broadband connections

If you’re noticing that your speeds are regularly much lower than you’d expect from your broadband package, there are a few tricks that you can try to help optimise performance within your home; these aren’t guaranteed to work, but usually do boost speeds a little bit.

1. Router Location - make sure your router is away from anything that may cause interference such as microwaves and baby monitors, whilst also keeping it central in your home as best you can.
2. Wired Connection - for static devices such as games consoles and desktop computers, a wired connection using an ethernet cable may be the best choice, as this minimises the speed lost when transferring wirelessly.
3. Upgrade Your Router - older routers can sometimes struggle to keep up with the speeds that you’re looking to obtain. A quick upgrade in hardware can often enable you to access those few extra Mbps.

For more info on how to boost your broadband speeds, check out this post!

Testing your broadband speed

To test your broadband speed, make sure your device is connected to your broadband then head over to your preferred speed test website or app - www.speedtest.net is a popular choice that’s free to use. Simply click go and you’ll be given a breakdown of your speeds at that time.

What other aspects impact poor performance?

Upload and download speeds aren’t the only thing that impacts your performance - there are other stats to look at that may be impacting how well your broadband can perform. Ping is your broadband connection’s reaction time, essentially recording how fast you get a response after sending a request to a server. If your ping score is fast, it means that you have a responsive connection. This is particularly important when working in scenarios where timing is important, such as online gaming. You may also see ping referred to as ‘latency’ - don’t worry, they’re the same thing.

Network volume may also impact how effective your broadband performance is. The more devices are active on the network at a time, the more stretched your bandwidth becomes, resulting in slower speeds for all. There are a few ways around this, including prioritising devices so that some carry more weight when distributing bandwidth, changing network channels, or upgrading to a package that offers greater bandwidth.

Broadband throttling

This is when your speeds are intentionally slowed down by your internet service provider - it’s a reactive measure taken to attempt to regulate traffic on a network so that bandwidth congestion is minimised. Many providers take part in this process, resulting in customers experiencing less than optimal performance at peak times. Zen has a no-throttling policy that ensures that all of our customers are given the best quality broadband connections at all times.