Is Fiber Internet Right for You?

As the cabled cousin to 5G wireless speed, fiber optic internet operates far faster than the lines which came before it. This has led to many Nigerians asking, is this something I need? The question can be a complicated one, depending heavily on what you use your internet for. By looking at the most common types of uses of the internet today, we hope to illuminate whether or not you should make the light-speed jump.

Availability

Before even considering adopting fiber internet, you first need to understand that connection points here are still limited. This is a case in almost every country, but it will not always be this way. For example, the coverage offered by the FibreOne ISP is only available in and around Lagos, but this will change over time. Just as with other advanced utilities, lines are slowly spider-webbing their way out. For many in larger areas, this means the arrival of fiber is more a case of when than if.

“Glasfaser – Fiber – Internet – DSL – bl” (CC BY-SA 2.0) by Christoph Scholz

When is Fiber Right for You?

There are a couple of situations where fiber could be the perfect fit for your home. The first is if you rely heavily on large file downloads and uploads. According to Techpoint, typical internet download speeds in Nigeria are around 11.70 Mbps, with uploads usually being around 10% of that speed. For a 1 gigabyte file, this would mean downloads and uploads taking 13 minutes and 2 hours respectively.

In other words, if you need to upload videos or large amounts of data, fiber can be an excellent choice. The other situation where you might want to consider fiber is if you have a large number of connected users on one network. Big families or hotel operators have to divide speed between all active users, which means the added speed of fiber can help you avoid times of slow internet frustration.

When Fiber is Not Necessary

For the average at-home user, fiber is probably not going to make an appreciable difference. For example, if a couple of people in your home want to stream high-definition videos on YouTube, Hulu, or any other system, you shouldn’t experience any problems with existing connections. The cut off for this is 4K video, as Highspeedinternet explains, which might require a fiber upgrade.

In other uses like general browsing and entertainment, existing plans will also suit fine most of the time. For example, consider a common use of online casino games listed on websites like CasinoWings

“MacBook Pro” (CC BY-SA 2.0) by karmadude

Keeping Watching this Space

There is a pattern in many countries that adopt fiber: Eventually, fiber plans will become as cheap as traditional DSL and cable connections. As more people connect to fiber, the more money ISPs have to play with, and the more technology improves, the cheaper fiber becomes to install and operate. Because of this, you should remember that while fiber might be expensive at first, it will get much cheaper over time. Even if it’s not available in your area yet, watch closely, and when it does arrive, jumping over could be an easy choice if you need it.

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