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The Internet United States

Sandy, Utah Tops US Cities For Broadband Speed 121

Posted by timothy from the short-hop-to-awesome-slc-library dept.
darthcamaro writes "If you want to live in the city with the fastest average broadband connection speed in the US, you have to move to Utah. According to Akamai's latest State of the Internet Report, Sandy, Utah is at the top of the list for US cities with the fastest average broadband speeds, with an average connection speed of 33,464 Kbps (33.5 Mbps). Overall in the US, the average broadband connection speed in the third quarter of 2009 came in at 3.9 Mbps, down by 2.4 percent on a year-over-year basis, but that's not a major cause for concern in Akamai's view. 'The overall year-over-year decline in the US average connection speed was relatively minor,' report author David Belson, director of market intelligence at Akamai Technologies said. 'The larger year-over-year sample base may have contributed to the decline, especially as mobile usage grows.'"
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Sandy, Utah Tops US Cities For Broadband Speed More

Sandy, Utah Tops US Cities For Broadband Speed

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  • I googled for ISPs in sandy, utah and found the regular players offering 3mbs...

    How is the average 33 megabits? Where are all these people getting > 33mbit service? Verizon didn't seem to offer fios with the addresses in sandy utah i plugged in.

    • Re: (Score:1, Informative)

      by Anonymous Coward

      Sandy is part of utopia.net (http://www.utopianet.org/) which is fiber to home like fios.

      • That page used to be a lot more informative. I haven't even found the coverage map yet.

        Logan isn't part of that yet is it? I just barely moved from Logan and I can't figure out how they seem to be averaging 23. I guess it might be the University and the fact that the student population is a huge percentage of the town.

      • What? Last I heard, Sandy soundly rejected Utopia.

        Check the list of member cities [utopianet.org] - Sandy is not listed.

        • It is a bit bizarre that so many cities rejected joining up to have the most advanced residential fiber network in the nation built in them. (Granted, a lot of them dropped out due to telecom pressure, but still.)

          • It is a bit bizarre that so many cities rejected joining up to have the most advanced residential fiber network in the nation built in them. (Granted, a lot of them dropped out due to telecom pressure, but still.)

            There was a lot of FUD by Qwest and Comcast, and the council idiots succumbed to it. This might reveal some info: FreeUtopia [freeutopia.org]

    • I don't have to google Sandy; my parents live there, as well as many of my friends. I can't figure out where the number is coming from either.

      • Maybe that average is due to a few freakish fast connections, like some university campus with a blazing 10gbit link or something.

        Shows you why statistics that only show averages without median or standard deviation are meaningless.

    • Re: (Score:3, Interesting)

      by Shadow-isoHunt ( 1014539 )
      I used to live in Sandy. Comcast offers a 20mbit plan, and you can get a 100mbit link from xmission.

  • Seriously, once you get to 1 mbit, web browsing is about as good as it gets. Like blinking twice as fast, you simply don't notice.
    Unless you're into YouTube HD, in which case 4 mbit will be noticeable. I get my television channels delivered on a 4~5 mbit connection. Now, I can see a reason for speed with online backups, etc., but unless you're torrenting, what does your top speed really matter?

    You want a car analogy? Where's the metric on which country has the fastest average top-speed per capita? Does it

    • Seriously, once you get to 1 mbit, web browsing is about as good as it gets. Like blinking twice as fast, you simply don't notice. Unless you're into YouTube HD, in which case 4 mbit will be noticeable.

      Unless you like, you know, download files.

      Actually, I have 6 Mbps down and it's fine. What I need improved is my upstream bandwidth. I only get about 400 Kbps, and that's barely usable for my over-the-Internet backups. The backup of my photos has been running for over a month now, and has another month to go. I'd really like to back up my DV, but it's just impractical.

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by HeronBlademaster ( 1079477 )

      One would assume someone going by "ThreeGigs" would want a faster connection ;)

      When I buy a new game on Steam, for example, I don't want to wait for the 7GB download on a 1Mbps connection. (15.93 hours assuming I can saturate the connection.) If I have a 12Mbps connection instead, I only have to wait 1.33 hours instead.

      But even if you reject that use-case (and anything vaguely similar), try having a family with two adults and three kids, all using computers and TV-over-IP and VoIP, on a single 1Mbps conne

    • 4-5mbit is great, unless you have multiple people in your home.

      Do you know how annoying it is playing games when people are watching Youtube or downloading email? Ping spikes from 65ms to 500ms. That's ignoring torrenting and the like.

      I make do with 3mbit, because I like my DSL ISP and Cable blows here - but I really would jump on 12mbit if it was available. I download enough linux distros (FTP :P ) that I could use that extra downstream.

    • My connection is 10Mb/s, while my mother's is 1Mb/s, so I got to see exactly what the difference was when I went home over christmas. It really is noticeable. For example, I read a few comics in the morning and I open them all in tabs when I wake up. On my connection they can all load in parallel in a few seconds. On hers, they load so slowly that usually one or two timed out. I can stream iPlayer content in HD on my connection, while on hers the standard quality stuff drops frames. Even downloading r

    • According to speakeasy:

      Last Result:
      Download Speed: 46563 kbps (5820.4 KB/sec transfer rate)
      Upload Speed: 3742 kbps (467.8 KB/sec transfer rate)

      That was a short hop to their Seattle location from Central Washington, so definitely best case, but it still looks cool.

      I can usually sustain 3.5 MB/second downloading system updates from Apple's website. so the real world rate is less, but the problem has been slow servers at the other end for awhile now.

      The connection out of the fiber-optic box is 100 Mbit, so tha

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by Wildclaw ( 15718 )

      but unless you're torrenting, what does your top speed really matter?

      If you are torrenting, you care even less about speed. That is because if you use torrents, your internet speed is measured by the formula MIN(upload, download) while business/government interests that don't like citizens to communicate with each other use the formula MAX(upload,download).

      Basically, someone using torrents is more interested in the balance between upload and download, while what is being pushed by massmedia is huge download with little to no upload capacity.

    • > Seriously, once you get to 1 mbit, web browsing is about as good as it gets.

      I have 1.360 Mbit/s downstream here. When opening more than one page at a time or when there is more than one person surfing, you notice delays. Pretty much everyone I know has at least 10 Mbit/s, most have 16 Mbit/s, at work, I have between 40 Mbit/s to 100 Mbit/s depending on usage and the server on the other side.

      So, being able to compare the two on a daily basis, it _does_ matter.

      PS: Obviously, bash.org loads faster than a

    • Re: (Score:2)

      by thogard ( 43403 )

      Um.. No!

      3 mb is much faster than 1mb.
      100 mb is even faster.
      I have 3/3 at home and the 2/2 at work sucks.
      I have 17/17 to many peering points on my home connection.

      Oh my connection is clipped after the 1st 60 seconds. Since the link is 1 gb in places which means some torrents complete before the connection is clipped.

  • 1- There is nothing else to do in Utah
    2- By now, they must be a virtual backup of all the pron on the net

    p.s. I'm only kidding, I have never been there ;-)

  • Sandy? (Score:3, Funny)

    by Yvan256 ( 722131 ) on Saturday January 16, 2010 @04:50PM (#30793400) Homepage Journal

    They got broadband connections in San D'oria? Damn you, Elvaans!

    Signed, pissed off Bastokan.

  • Correction, Sandy *had* the fastest speed. Sorry folks, they've just been slashdotted.

  • Whoever came to that conclusion doesn't know shit (Score:5, Informative)

    by rahvin112 ( 446269 ) on Saturday January 16, 2010 @05:03PM (#30793510)

    Sandy Utah has two ISPs, Qwest and Comcast plus the occasionally available WISP. Not a single ISP in the Sandy area offers speeds in excess of Comcasts standard 16Mbs high end package. It's absurd that some article lists the average as 33.3Mbs as I don't know a single area where that speed is available and I live in the heart of Sandy. There is Metro Ethernet available at the cost of multiple thousands but no one outside large business has it.

    This apparent study of internet speeds is worthless and it's conclusions garbage.

    • What about UTOPIA?

      • Sandy rejected admission to Utopia and has never been part of the organization. Even in areas where Utopia exists the uptake is significantly less than 50% and the only speeds available are 15Mbs and 30Mbs with two cities having 50Mbs available. Even in the Utopia cities averages of 33.3Mbs couldn't be reached.

        The article has the worst conclusions I've ever seen. They claim Sandy has an average internet speed that doesn't even exist anywhere in sandy unless you are buying at DS3 directly from a telecom comp

        • I posted about this on another forum, where someone mentioned that Qwest offers FIOS service in Sandy. He didn't know the speed, though.

          • I posted about this on another forum, where someone mentioned that Qwest offers FIOS service in Sandy. He didn't know the speed, though.

            As FIOS is a trademark of verizon, its extremely unlikely that qwest is providing that service and last I heard, verizon has never deployed fios in Utah, anywhere.

        • Xmission [xmission.com] has standard residential UTOPIA bandwidths of 15 Mbit/s and 50 Mbit/s - up and down. The end user links are all 100 Mbit/s Ethernet (over fiber), and you can get a 100 Mbit/s "business" connection if you want.

          • Xmission [xmission.com] has standard residential UTOPIA bandwidths of 15 Mbit/s and 50 Mbit/s - up and down. The end user links are all 100 Mbit/s Ethernet (over fiber), and you can get a 100 Mbit/s "business" connection if you want.

            But not in sandy.

            Taken from: http://utopianet.org/service-area [utopianet.org]

            UTOPIA's member cities are: Brigham City, Cedar City, Cedar Hills, Centerville, Layton, Lindon, Midvale, Murray, Orem, Payson, Perry, Riverton, Tremonton, Vineyard, Washington, and West Valley City.

            These are the only areas which have access to UTOPIA. Xmission provides DSL connections to other locations (and free wireless to libraries and coffee shops), but UTOPIA access can only happen where UTOPIA is available.

            ...sadly.

            --Jimmy

        • So you know if Sandy rejected Utopia because the politically active portion are luddites, or because they were bowing to telecom pressure?

    • Reading the comments, on this page, of people who have _lived there_ I would say you are ranting without even the uttermost basic research.

      Comcast offers 20 Mbit/s, xmission offers 100 Mbit/s.

      PS: It's nice to see that you can get to +5 Informative on /. with no knowlegde about the topic at hand ;)

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by nilbog ( 732352 )

        Comcast has just started offering 50mbps down 10mpbs up connections in my neighborhood in Salt Lake City (sugar house) area. AFAIK they offer these same speeds in Sandy.

    • It wouldn't surprise me if this was deliberate misinformation. The FCC has been asking for submissions for their stimulus fund allotment of 7.5 billion for high speed internet across the states. A lot of people have been complaining about existing coverage, or leaving comments like 'hey, let's also get the 200-300 billion the telco's have already gotten paid for broadband rollout but have failed to deliver'. Now here comes a really good stat showing one city is well on its way to being true broadband.

      If

    • Except Utopia, which offers last mile fiber to the home at 50mbps up 50 mbps down. When I had Utopia in Orem, UT that particular connection cost $50/mo.

      You don't buy a connection from Utopia though, you'll need to find a carrier in your neighborhood. I'd try Xmission - because they're awesome.

      Some of the other comments say that Utopia is not available in Sandy specifically, but that doesn't change the fact that Utah is home to the fastest available residential connections. Sandy might just be the "averag

  • That's wonderful news! Or, maybe not so much (Score:4, Informative)

    by haruchai ( 17472 ) on Saturday January 16, 2010 @05:06PM (#30793542)

    So, according to this article, the US, the lone superpower now has at least 7 cities that have surpassed
    the average Japanese or South Korean village in broadband speed.

    Pour me some champagne.

    • the US, the lone superpower now has at least 7 cities that have surpassed
      the average Japanese or South Korean village in broadband speed.

      Clearly, the Japanese and Koreans have much larger penises...

      • Re: (Score:2)

        by haruchai ( 17472 )

        If by penises you mean infrastructure, then, yes, I would say they are quite well-endowed.

        It's not just telecom - both countries have long, stiff railway cocks as well.

        • If by penises you mean infrastructure, then, yes, I would say they are quite well-endowed.

          Not true at all. There's good reason the US is the hub of the internet to the world... There is FAR more internet infrastructure (and bandwidth) in the USA than anywhere else.

          If "infrastructure" to you means only "last-mile", then you have to explain EXACTLY why that's beneficial to the general public, because I'd be inclined to view inexpensive internet access (even if quite slow) to be the most beneficial to the g

          • Re: (Score:2)

            by haruchai ( 17472 )

            Good, fast, cheap - pick any three. From what my Japanese and Korean friends tell me, they have it all when it comes to Internet access.

            And, that "last mile" that you disparage? They have Hi-Def TV over their Net Connection. I would need to sell my soul to my local Cable provider to get that.

            A better last mile empowers the end-user and makes it possible for more services to be delivered - especially if the last mile is treated as common infrastructure and not owned by
            a provider.

            • From what my Japanese and Korean friends tell me, they have it all when it comes to Internet access.

              Feel free to prove it...

              They have Hi-Def TV over their Net Connection.

              Who cares what "connection" it comes over? I can get on-demand HDTV as well, and probably just as inexpensively as they do.

              A better last mile empowers the end-user and makes it possible for more services to be delivered

              You've completely failed to provide evidence of any of this so far. The ONE example you mentioned is nonsense.

              • Re: (Score:2)

                by haruchai ( 17472 )

                | Feel free to prove it...

                Feel free to prove me wrong. I would point out that it's been widely reported for years that those 2 countries are leaders in 'net bandwidth to the home.

                | Who cares what "connection" it comes over? I can get on-demand HDTV as well, and probably just as inexpensively as they do.

                Let's see you prove it - since proof seems to be so important to you. I imagine you must live in a monopoly-free TV paradise where the channel or program of your choice is magically beamed to your set but man

                • You're just demonstrating your inability to read at this point...

                  those 2 countries are leaders in 'net bandwidth to the home.

                  A) That doesn't mean it's cheap. I'd be inclined to view inexpensive internet access (even if quite slow) to be the most beneficial to the general public.
                  B) I specifically excluded "to the home". If "infrastructure" to you means only "last-mile", then you have to explain EXACTLY why that's beneficial

                  Let's see you prove it - since proof seems to be so important to you.

                  I've reduced t

                  • Re: (Score:2)

                    by haruchai ( 17472 )

                    Kudos to you "reducing this conversation to waiting for evidence" - a conversation I started - when from your very first statements, you provided no evidence and plenty of your own "vague assertions".

                    Your "inclined to view" and "probably just as inexpensively" statements aren't backed up with a shred of evidence but you certainly didn't hesitate to accuse me of being too lazy to search.
                    Quid pro quo, lazypiper.

                    Where's the evidence for your point A?
                    And, your point B seems very confused - how can you "exclude"

  • We need the speed cause of the weather (Score:1, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward

    Sandy is about 30 minutes south of Salt Lake City, and the U of U. Nice and cold and in the middle of a frozen inversion caused from being in the Salt Lake Valley. Nothing like breathing in dirt when you walk outside... Thus why I'm on my speedy broadband connection somewhere in the middle of the aforementioned city.. =]

  • Fastest speeds? (Score:2, Interesting)

    by noidentity ( 188756 )

    US cities with the fastest average broadband speeds

    Is that like having a speedometer for your speedometer, to see how fast your speed is?

  • As other commenters have noted, there is no way this figure applies to Sandy City proper. Sandy does not have a UTOPIA deployment. The real problem, though, is that the Salt Lake valley has a large number of relatively small cities all served by the same local ISPs, and there is no reliable way that Akamai can tell which users are in which local cities to that level of accuracy. The IP addresses don't carry any more information than (roughly) somewhere in the Salt Lake valley. One would have to be in a d

  • Considering the size of the US in land area, having a 3.9 mbps average isn't that bad.

    • Considering land mass as well as population density have very little to do with broadband speeds I'm not sure what you point is. It's one of the great broadband myths that small countries like Japan and Finland have a huge advantage for deploying broadband over America because of population density. The real issue is the cost to deploy (it may be cheaper to deploy in rural Vermont than in Manhattan), franchise agreements in cities, exclusivity agreements in apartment/condo complexes, and lack of line shar

  • Is no one else concerned bythe fact that the average speed DECLINED by 2.8%?? Seriously? I mean, I understand our speeds suck. I get it. But they're now declining???? Yes, yes, lotsa people have internet on their phones. Average those in, and speeds will drop. But shouldn't there be an offset by all those new amazing DOCSYS 3.0 and FIOS technologies? I guess not. US connection speeds suck, and these people are proud that they're getting worse. Fuckers.

  • I live in Sandy, UT and the ONLY way to get over 22Mbps is to get Comcast's Extreme 50/10 package which is over $100 a month and it only became available 3 weeks ago. While the median income here is 80k/ year and plenty of people can afford it, I doubt 50% of the 100k people here upgraded to that package in the last 3 weeks. In Sandy, Comcast has 3 subnets you can get assigned to. One of them would only result in 40/6 speedtest results and would never result in uploads over 7.5Mbps. While connections thr

  • I just tested my results (speedtest.net)

    Download: 32MB
    Upload: 1.8MB
    Ping: 13ms

    Your mileage may vary.

    Here's the link: http://www.speedtest.net/result/685154620.png [speedtest.net]

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