Best Internet Providers in Vernon, AL for April, 2020

Spectrum was first introduced to the world after its parent company, Charter, merged with Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks to bring all three companies under the same roof and to increase the level of service more than any one of the individual companies could have provided on their own. Since then, Spectrum has expanded into forty-four states offering coverage to over 100 million Americans. Spectrum continues to expand their coverage areas, attracting more and customers with its easy to understand tiered pricing and historically fast, reliable internet connections.

Charter, Spectrum’s parent company, was founded in 1980 primarily offering home telephone service and television. They eventually entered into the internet market through a strategic partnership with EarthLink, since acquiring and merging with multiple companies over its life cycle. The company we now know as Charter Spectrum came to fruition in 2016 when it merged with Bright House Networks and Time Warner Cable, making it the third-largest cable television provider in the nation just behind AT&T and Comcast. It was after this merger that Charter brought all services covered by the three formerly-independent companies under the brand name “Spectrum.” As a condition of this merger, Charter Spectrum agreed to expand its lines to generally underserved areas of New York State with 145,000 new residences to receive service by 2021. Since the merger, Charter has entered into further strategic partnerships with companies like Comcast and Verizon to expand the suite of services it offers as well as expanding its general service area.

Spectrum uses a hybrid fiber-coaxial network to supply its customers with the internet. This was an easy transition for the company to make once they started offering internet, leveraging the massive network they inherited from Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks, allowing them to hit the ground running once they entered the market as an internet service provider. Hybrid fiber-coaxial lines are the most common way for most companies to offer internet service due to their relative low cost, especially when compared to fiber. Reaching higher speeds than DSL, a hybrid fiber-coaxial line is able to provide more than fast enough internet for most consumers though still being slower than fiber. With that being said, hybrid fiber-coaxial lines do have their drawbacks. The biggest is shared bandwidth. Total bandwidth is shared among all users on those lines so when there is heavy usage, the end-user is going to receive reduced speeds. However, this usually only happens a portion of the day and even when congested, most receive fast enough speeds to be able to handle anything they’d be looking to do.

Spectrum offers multiple services beyond the internet including cable television and home phone service. They offer multiple different plans, bundles, and prices, allowing for easy navigation and customization for their customers. This is especially important as every household has different needs based on their number of active devices, active users, and budget. Now, this is all based on availability, but generally, there are multiple different options in every market Spectrum serves. Spectrum has created a service that can meet the demands of any budget and any digital lifestyle.

Though having been around since 1986, ViaSat didn’t launch its first internet plans until 2012. ViaSat is a satellite internet service provider with a general focus on serving areas that normally do not have access to a reliable internet connection. Covering 98% of the country and all 50 states, all that is needed to be able to connect is a clear line of sight to the southern sky, a modem, and a satellite dish to send and receive signals. This has helped many of those who would otherwise have to spend thousands, if not tens of thousands of dollars, to run a DSL, cable, or fiber line to their home.

ViaSat has continually upgraded its service. When the company first launched, its entire service survived off the back of one satellite, the ViaSat-1. Since then, they’ve acquired three additional satellites, either through additional launches or acquisitions from other companies to greatly expand its capabilities. The last of these to launch, the ViaSat-2, was said to increase the total bandwidth and network capacity available by 300 Gigabits per second as well as take ViaSat’s service internationally. They have plans to increase this further. They’ve announced three more launches of their newest satellite, the ViaSat-3, that will increase the total bandwidth by a full terabit per second. The first of these is set to launch in 2020 with a second launch planned by 2022.

Offering free standard installation on all orders, ViaSat makes connecting to the internet easier than ever. ViaSat offers multiple different plans that feature different speeds and different levels of priority data. Priority data? I’m sure the question being asked is “Does ViaSat have a data cap?” The answer is a resounding no. Viasat offers unlimited data without charging overage fees or shutting your internet connection off. If one does go over their priority data, then at that point, customers just have to contend with network congestion much like any other internet service provider. If there is no congestion, then speed should be unaffected. This makes ViaSat a perfect option for activities like streaming, checking social media, or visiting a favorite site on the web.

ViaSat is perfect for almost any web-based application. Connecting your smartphone, sharing videos online, and watching your favorite streaming service are perfect fits for ViaSat’s network. The only limitations ViaSat has are gaming and Virtual Private Networks(VPN). When it comes to gaming, there should be a half a second to full second lag time when playing online. If you’re playing single-player games, this interruption is non-existent and will not interfere with any updates that a game may release after launch. A VPN is another matter. VPNs put a significant strain on any network and satellite networks doubly so. When using a VPN with ViaSat, speeds can be expected to drop anywhere from 50 to 75 percent. That doesn’t mean ViaSat is an inferior service though.  However, when looking to game or use in-home VPN, it’s important to be aware of the technology’s limitations so that you can plan accordingly and choose the best service that will fit your needs.

HughesNet currently has the highest coverage area in the nation with all fifty states falling under its service area. One of the two major satellite providers in the nation, HughesNet has focused the core of its business on providing internet to underserved or un-served areas, often rural or small towns. Its recently increased speeds up to 25mbps with the launch of its new Gen 5 satellite, the “EchoStar XIX.” With ninety-eight percent of the country under HughesNet’s coverage area, it’s almost guaranteed that they’ll be an option available to any consumer.

HughesNet uses geosynchronous satellites to provide its customers with broadband internet connections. Since HughesNet was initially founded, it’s launched multiple satellites with its latest launch occurring in 2017 with the “EchoStar XIX,” powering HughesNet’s Gen 5 service. This launch allowed the company to reach broadband levels, increasing speeds to 25 Mbps across the board. It also increased the available bandwidth that HughesNet offered its customers as well as simplifying their pricing structure to a tiered system that was based on available data caps. HughesNet does operate off of priority data caps though its internet can be considered unlimited. At no point does HughesNet charge overage prices or shut the internet off if a customer goes over their “priority data” limit, instead just having to deal with reduced speeds until their next billing cycle. If a customer does need more data before their next billing cycle rolls around, HughesNet has made data tokens available, increasing priority data and increasing available speeds in the process.

HughesNet is a great choice for rural customers as wired connections are often completely unavailable in America’s more remote locations. Satellite internet allows them to access the world wide web at broadband speeds allowing for almost any activity. It does have its drawbacks though. The biggest activities this can be seen in is online gaming and virtual private networks. This is in large part due to the latency, or ping, that satellite internet experiences. The time signals take to transmit from the customer’s dish to the satellite to the receiving and then back again can take anywhere from a half-second to a second. For most activities like browsing the internet or streaming video, this latency is almost entirely imperceivable. For gaming though, that often required split-second reaction times, it is unavoidable. VPNs, in particular, are affected, as well. When using a VPN, download speeds even when within the priority data limit can tank anywhere from fifty to seventy-five percent. This reduction in speeds is not guaranteed with some VPN users not having any issues whatsoever. With that being said, it is something to take into account when considering a satellite internet provider.

For many rural customers, satellite internet is going to be one of the only viable options open to them. That doesn’t make it a lesser product though. When choosing the right package for you, assess your needs, your internet usage, and your budget to choose the package that will leave you satisfied and meet all of your digital requirements.