Hi,
My fiancé and I are looking at buying a house in a remote location and the only available internet option is CenturyLink DSL (and satellite internet). CenturyLink told me 10mbps download and 1mbps upload speeds are what is available in the area. However, I work from home and I'm worried about the speed. I connect to a VPN and use Zoom daily. Sometimes up to 3 or 4 Zoom meetings a day. I would be the only user during the day (on one device- my company laptop). Would 10mbps be enough bandwidth for me to get through my day with no problems? I don't necessary need HD quality on my zoom calls, but it can't be really poor quality either.
CenturyLink DSL 10mbps speeds and WFH
Hello, welcome to SG.
Bandwidth requirements for Zoom are not very high, 1 Mbps should be enough to get good quality video.
For High Definition 720p video you need a bit more, 1.2 Mbps (1:1 video) to 2.6 Mbps (group video).
For bandwidth requirements, see: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articl ... -and-Linux
The issue with 10 Mbps DSL is not the downstream, rather the upstream limit of 1 Mbps. This can be a problem at times, considering sometimes you may only be getting 70-80% of that 1 Mbps, as it is "Up to 1 Mbps" if signal is good. Also, VPN encapsulation adds a bit of overhead, and 1 Mbps in this day an age is slow even for web surfing, it can feel sluggish at times.
I would look for an alternative internet that offers more than 1 Mbps upstream. Also, what kind of satellite internet is available there? Starlink is pretty good, it offers upstream speeds of 20 Mbps and should be much faster than that 10/1 DSL. Some remote locations also offer Wireless Internet that may offer more than 1 Mbps upstream, even 5G cellular internet is an option (T-Mobile offers Home Internet in some areas).
If it was me, I'd go for Starlink probably.
I hope this helps.
Bandwidth requirements for Zoom are not very high, 1 Mbps should be enough to get good quality video.
For High Definition 720p video you need a bit more, 1.2 Mbps (1:1 video) to 2.6 Mbps (group video).
For bandwidth requirements, see: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/articl ... -and-Linux
The issue with 10 Mbps DSL is not the downstream, rather the upstream limit of 1 Mbps. This can be a problem at times, considering sometimes you may only be getting 70-80% of that 1 Mbps, as it is "Up to 1 Mbps" if signal is good. Also, VPN encapsulation adds a bit of overhead, and 1 Mbps in this day an age is slow even for web surfing, it can feel sluggish at times.
I would look for an alternative internet that offers more than 1 Mbps upstream. Also, what kind of satellite internet is available there? Starlink is pretty good, it offers upstream speeds of 20 Mbps and should be much faster than that 10/1 DSL. Some remote locations also offer Wireless Internet that may offer more than 1 Mbps upstream, even 5G cellular internet is an option (T-Mobile offers Home Internet in some areas).
If it was me, I'd go for Starlink probably.
I hope this helps.
Thanks Philip!
Yeah that's my concern. I was finding the same info. In terms of satellite internet, there is HughesNet and Viasat. Starlink unfortunately is not available until late 2022. I'm seeing slightly better feedback on Viasat, but with satellite internet I've been told a VPN isn't doable. It will slow down speeds by 50-70%. With Viasat, they said I would be looking at max speeds of 30down/3up. It would be costly, but I'm considering what a combo situation would look like. Satellite network for Zoom/when I don't need to be connected to my VPN. And the DSL for when I do.
Yeah that's my concern. I was finding the same info. In terms of satellite internet, there is HughesNet and Viasat. Starlink unfortunately is not available until late 2022. I'm seeing slightly better feedback on Viasat, but with satellite internet I've been told a VPN isn't doable. It will slow down speeds by 50-70%. With Viasat, they said I would be looking at max speeds of 30down/3up. It would be costly, but I'm considering what a combo situation would look like. Satellite network for Zoom/when I don't need to be connected to my VPN. And the DSL for when I do.
Cellular Internet is also an option while you wait for Starlink to enter your market...
T-Mobile offers like 50Mbps down, 4 Mbps up, Verizon has 25 Mbps down, 5up.
Some home routers allow you to have two WAN ports, and you can do some complex routing based on the type of service, different type of traffic (port, VPN, video streaming) can be routed through a different ISP, even though all this may be a bit beyond home setup.
T-Mobile offers like 50Mbps down, 4 Mbps up, Verizon has 25 Mbps down, 5up.
Some home routers allow you to have two WAN ports, and you can do some complex routing based on the type of service, different type of traffic (port, VPN, video streaming) can be routed through a different ISP, even though all this may be a bit beyond home setup.