Broadband Speed Test: Are you getting what’s promised?

There has been a report by the communications watchdog OfCom that over half of broadband users are not getting the speed that they have been promised by their Internet providers. It seems that one in two users that were told that they would get up to 8 Mbps is only receiving 3.9Mbps.

Customers who live some distance from the telephone exchange often see that their connection to broadband slows right down between the times 8pm and 10pm. It has also been found that those who receive their broadband through copper wire, such as DSL have much slower download times than those with Cable broadband.

According to The Times Online, OfCom have said that it is impossible for service providers to offer its top speeds that were advertised to all of its customers, as some capacity is always reserved for technical reasons.

Some users who have signed up for up to the 8Mbps package have received 7.2 Mbps, this is the highest reported speed that anyone has actually received.

Test your speed with some of these speed tests below:

• www.speedtest.net
• www.broadbandspeedchecker.co.uk
• www.mybroadbandspeed.co.uk
• www.broadband-expert.co.uk