Broadband Connection

[Talbot]

hello all,
could you please give me some opinions on the pros and cons of USB and ETHERNET when connecting modem to computer. system is:
AMD Athlonxp2000+ 1.67Ghz
512MB ram
Windows XP home
ISP ntl 600kbs cable
I usually achieve 70kbs dowload speeds which seems o\k.AT the moment
I`m connected via e/net
Thanks talbot.

[Amarjit]

If it's NTL, they'll supply the modem.

[callum]

Originally posted by Talbot@5 August 2003 - 20:10
hello all,
could you please give me some opinions on the pros and cons of USB and ETHERNET when connecting modem to computer. system is:
AMD Athlonxp2000+ 1.67Ghz
512MB ram
Windows XP home
ISP ntl 600kbs cable
I usually achieve 70kbs dowload speeds which seems o\k.AT the moment
I`m connected via e/net
Thanks talbot.
I think you would only use the usb connection if you had no ethernet connection, the usb connetion uses more system resources.

[Path0gen]

UGH USBhttp://www.path0gen.dial.pipex.com/hammer_heh.gif
Think again my friend, USB takes up wayy more resources and ethernet was designed to transmit lots of data quickly. Network cards are so cheap there is no decision to be made. If you're worried about setting up the network card, think of it as a learning curve!!
Loadsa crap about setting up NTL here (http://homepage.ntlworld.com/robin.d.h.walker/cmtips).

[Lenuin]

Just think of it like this: There is only so much bandwidth that data has to travel through your motherboard to and from the cpu. The USB bus doesn't have near the bandwidth allocation that the PCI bus does.

[Shiranai_Baka]

Ethernet card wins.. GG :)

[3RA1N1AC]

i dunno about speed differences. i imagine USB might use more system resources. the major CON of USB would be that you can't use it with an internet router, if you want to use multiple computers (or a game console, since new consoles are starting to use broadband connections) with your modem.

even if you only have one PC, i suggest getting the ethernet modem just to keep that option open (being able to add a router and share the connection).

[Amarjit]

Ethernet's faster out of USB 1.1, but PCI is the best. :)

Edit: And if you get PCI, you could do what I did and remove the 56Kbps modem that's just wasting space. ;)

[boyzeee]

yeh i on ntl with 1mb connection and i use pci intel pro card and download at up2 150kbps if plenty sources, the usb modem they supply just isnt up to the job, kept kicking me off when i was pushing it but its ok if you running the 128kb service from them tho. :D

[downloader2008]

I use an Ethernet Card on both my computers and they work excellent and reach top speeds. I had to install one on my older computer, and it is really easy, and usually im not too great at installing new hardware! You just pop it in and then use the software that came with it to install it! I hear that with USB, the connections are a lot slower, and sometimes, the connection will go out. I've seen in many places, and from many people heard that Ethernet is the way to go, and from my experience, it is! Get a ethernet card if you dont have one, and use that for your broadband connection. :)

[bob_the_alien]

I would say go either way.

I use a Ethernet connection at home, but while working I've hooked various computers up using a USB connection, both are capable of giving the speeds needed for broadband connections. So either way your fine with speeds.

It is true though that Ethernet is allot faster than USB, but as for home internet connections go right now, they can't keep up with the speed Ethernet offers, so USB is a good alternative, because it is still above the connections we currently have at hand.

The only real problem with using USB instead of Ethernet, is the other USB devices. USB is shared bandwidth, so if you are using a bunch of USB devices plus being on the net, for each device hooked up, it will cut the USB bandwidth in half. Unless your running like 4 or 5 devices I don't think you would notice any change in the internet connection though, but this is one problem you might want to consider.

Especially since you can go buy an Ethernet card for like 10 bucks.