Fios 25mbps. Is it worth it for the ++ bandwidth?

[AlexDD]

I am thinking of upgrading my 1.5 Mbps dsl to Fios.

My primary use of the new bandwidth will be to take advantage of new viewing platforms like boxee, netflix to get a better picture.

Is it worth the $15 extra a month to go from 15/5 Mbps to the 25/25 Mbps?

What is the minimum for 1080p streaming?

I am also thinking of ditching my home phone to go with Ooma.

Thanks for any help.

[JDay]

It is well worth it, your current connection cannot handle 1080p streaming.

[AlexDD]

It is well worth it, your current connection cannot handle 1080p streaming.

My current connection of 1.5mbps is way out dated Netflix is watchable but not great.

Just seeing how much to jump up in bandwidth.

[gimme]

go with the 15/5, i had it for 3 years and loved every bit of it

[Merc1138]

1.5mbps is definitely lacking.

Aside from bit torrents and usenet, you'd be hard pressed to actually use all 25mbps at once with only a single application(there's a couple exceptions besides what I previously mentioned). I dropped my own bandwidth down a tier to 12mbps when they upped it to 20mbps to save 10 bucks just because I was absolutely not using all of the available bandwidth except in a couple rare circumstances and the few minutes that might be saved downloading large files just didn't matter.

ETA: I forgot something. If you get the 15mbps connection and it's not working it, it's not as if you can't upgrade later on anyway.

[AlexDD]

1.5mbps is definitely lacking.

Aside from bit torrents and usenet, you'd be hard pressed to actually use all 25mbps at once with only a single application(there's a couple exceptions besides what I previously mentioned). I dropped my own bandwidth down a tier to 12mbps when they upped it to 20mbps to save 10 bucks just because I was absolutely not using all of the available bandwidth except in a couple rare circumstances and the few minutes that might be saved downloading large files just didn't matter.

ETA: I forgot something. If you get the 15mbps connection and it's not working it, it's not as if you can't upgrade later on anyway.

Thanks. Forgot I could always upgrade from 15 to 25 if it is not enough.

[gunn]

If you think about it logistically, even with a content distribution network to scatter the various Netflix servers around the country, they would have a hard time sustaining a 25Mbps link to EVERY streaming customer (even if it was just in a city from a local server).

Netflix's pipes aren't that big.

From what I see online, 5Mbps average link is required for a 720p stream and (from some comment via Twitter) ~8+Mbps for a 1080p stream.
Phrase googled: netflix 1080p "Mbps requirement"

Also, since we are talking about a 1-way stream vs. a 2-way (game/video conferencing) where latency is key, any video/audio will likely be cached (you'll notice a slight delay before the video starts playing). This way, if the actual bitrate spikes (say for a fast motion/action sequence), then the decoder will be fed from the stream+buffer vs. just decoding directly what comes down your pipe.
-g

[damndave]

Man. 15/5 is more than enough. But 25/25 would be SICK!

I am already happy with my 7/1. I downgraded from 10/1.

[den888]

Excellent point.

Netflix cached content is carried by a CDN's edge servers. If they had a 1 gbps link out of the CDN edge data center, they could service at most 40 simultaneous users at 25 mbps throughput (1000 mbps or 1 gbps / 25 = 40) because the 1 gbps link would be at capacity.

If you think about it logistically, even with a content distribution network to scatter the various Netflix servers around the country, they would have a hard time sustaining a 25Mbps link to EVERY streaming customer (even if it was just in a city from a local server).

Netflix's pipes aren't that big.

From what I see online, 5Mbps average link is required for a 720p stream and (from some comment via Twitter) ~8+Mbps for a 1080p stream.
Phrase googled: netflix 1080p "Mbps requirement"

Also, since we are talking about a 1-way stream vs. a 2-way (game/video conferencing) where latency is key, any video/audio will likely be cached (you'll notice a slight delay before the video starts playing). This way, if the actual bitrate spikes (say for a fast motion/action sequence), then the decoder will be fed from the stream+buffer vs. just decoding directly what comes down your pipe.
-g

[WTSGDYBBR]

My Cable is just as good as Fios wait into DOSIC 3 comes around you will not get 50MB Download on Fios.

[goodlookin1]

I have Fiber to my home via Surewest. My speeds are advertized as 15/15 and if I was rich, could go up to 50/50 ($200 per mo), but I find my actual speeds are 14.05/40! I've actually had my upload go up to 58Mbps once. I can tell you that if you ever upload information to FTP servers, send info to anybody (gaming, file transfers), it is the BEST UPGRADE EVER. When I play COD:MW2 on xbox360, I am often the host and have way better scores, and if I am not the host, I still have a 4 bar (best) connection....my ping is unbelievable.

Cable ***could*** be just as fast as lower tier Fiber connections, but they usually arent. The fastest I've seen cable provide is 25/5. Sure the download is good, but I use a lot of upload for gaming and file transfers to other servers, and 5 is only "ok". You typically wont notice any faster internet browsing past a 5Mbps download speed, so the only thing that would be affected is streaming and downloading large files. Most file hosts/servers cap out at 1MBps ~ 1.5MBps anyways....they dont want bandwidth hogs stealing every ounce of bandwidth they have.

Oh and just to give you an idea of what a DVD's bitrate is at, it streams raw data at 11.08Mbps with a 1Mb buffer, so essentially it takes a 10Mbps connection for a 0% compression. But most DVD's are between 6 and 8Mbps. HD Bluray Maxes out at 40Mbps, so to stream a Blu-ray movie with 0% compression, you need quite a connection


Remember, there are 8 bits in a byte, so 8 Mega bits per second = 1 Mega BYTE per second. So ideally, if you are downloading from a fast server and you have an 8Mbps download speed, then you can download a 1 MB file in 1 second.

1Mbps =/= 1MBps

[driveljay]

My Cable is just as good as Fios wait into DOSIC 3 comes around you will not get 50MB Download on Fios.

this is laughable...DOSIC 3 has been the talk for the past couple years from the big cable companies. FIOS is already offering 35/35MB to the home and even larger to the small business. In addition they just successfully tested 10GIG up and down (obviously not needed for home use, but still possible over the fios network). Also keep an eye out in 2011 for new speeds being offered. 200/130MB is what is being thrown about. Not to mention the integration of smart phones/fios tv. "Flex view" was just launched and they will be adding more and more features that cable just can't do.
Good luck to cable

In any case...15/5 is plenty for the average home user. As stated above, if its not, you can upgrade at any time. No equipment change out is needed to up speed. Order it and they just turn it up.

[Travis8128]

I have fios:








Don't know if it matters but there are 5 other computers in this house all using internet listening to music,streaming and such.

[freonr22]

[Brianguy]

No need for 25 unless you have a bunch of money I'm not a verizon customer but i watch netflix while gaming online and haven't had any problem. save yourself a couple bucks! I downgraded to the low end package because I wasn't using all that bandwidth.