Great Connections Happen Here.™

The Difference Between Residential and Business Internet

Internet service not only varies among service providers. There are important differences between residential and business Internet.
scott-graham-5fNmWej4tAA-unsplash

Internet service not only varies among service providers. There are important differences between residential and business Internet. For those not familiar with the distinctions between residential and business Internet, there could be unpleasant ramifications. Remember that Internet service has a lot more to it than price alone. Quality and type of Internet service includes upload speeds, download speeds, consistency of connectivity and strength of signal. This is why you should never choose your Internet service based on price, and you should always understand what kind of service you are choosing between residential and business Internet.

Understanding the Terminology

The first important thing to know is that business Internet is also sometimes referred to as commercial Internet or enterprise Internet. If you’re a smaller business with a modest company size you might be confused by this terminology. It’s also confusing if you happen to be a non-profit and are not in business for commercial purposes. Nevertheless, commercial Internet service would be what you want to choose, even if your business has fewer than five employees or even if your organization is a non-profit and doesn’t operate for commercial gains. The high speed Internet Houston businesses rely on is commercial Internet service. 

Restricted Upload Speeds

Residential Internet service often has restricted upload speeds. This is because residential users don’t typically need to upload large files to the Internet. A common residential usage might entail uploading some family images to social media sites or a personal travel blog. The download speed is most important for residential Internet service, as customers want to stream movies and watch video clips at home.

However, businesses will usually need to upload very large files. They need fast upload speeds in addition to fast download speeds. Common business usage might include multiple image uploads for a business website and massive data file uploads that contain business information or customer data. This is a big reason why you should always choose business Internet for any kind of business organization you have. Business Internet service typically comes with parity. This is a term that simply means your upload speeds will meet or exceed your download speeds.

Uptime and Connectivity Guarantees 

When you have business Internet, you need to know that your Internet is always connected when you need it. Random or even daily outages are not conducive to good business operations. Uptime guarantees ensure that your business is always available for online operations. If your business Internet is constantly experiencing interruptions, you could lose valuable business and customers will go to your competitors. 

Residential Internet service simply does not come with the guarantees for uptime and connectivity that comes with business Internet. Typically, some minor interruptions in service are not a big problem for residential service. If the Internet is slow to download a webpage for a residential customer, it doesn’t affect their livelihood so much. But for a business trying to operate efficiently, this is a huge problem. This is a second reason why business Internet by the fastest Internet provider in Houston should be your first choice if you have any sized business. 

PS LIGHTWAVE provides high-speed, fiber internet for public and private commercial entities in the Greater Houston and surrounding areas.

Through our high-quality infrastructure, innovative technology and expert, locally based support, we deliver not only the best in connectivity and reliability but in scalability and redundancy. We invite you to learn more about our services, our history and our dedicated team.

Share This Blog Post:

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Pinterest
PS LIGHTWAVE Blog

PS LIGHTWAVE Blog

PS LIGHTWAVE, a leading telecommunications service provider headquartered in Houston, Texas, provides managed Ethernet Data Circuits, Internet, private network solutions and Voice over IP (VoIP) over one of the nation’s largest facilities-based private Metropolitan Area Networks (MANs). The switched Layer 2 network, backed by 24/7/365 Network Operations Center (NOC) support, encompasses approximately 5,500 route miles and 1,400 on-net locations and connects 100+ fault-tolerant multi-gigabit Ethernet rings for built-in redundancy, security, low latency, and high-availability. At PS LIGHTWAVE Great Connections Happen Here™.

For more information, please visit https://www.pslightwave.com or call 832-615-8000.