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Internet Service Providers in Ontario

Should I Choose a Cable or DSL Internet Service Provider for my home?

Questions about whether you should go with Cable Internet or DSL? No worries - we got you. Your answers are here.

Have you decided that it’s time to start looking for a new internet service provider in rural Ontario? It can be a bit overwhelming trying to sort through all the internet providers Ontario has to offer, and from there decide if you should go with a cable or DSL (Dedicated Subscriber Line) connection.

Whenever you go to someone for advice, it seems like you’re quickly weighed down with technical jargon and vague numbers, leaving you wondering if anyone could possibly understand what they’re talking about. Most customers understand download speed, but what if your a business in Ontario and need more bandwidth than just plain old internet access?

But don’t worry, because we’ve done the hard work for you! Take a look at our helpful guide below and find out what internet service provider and what type of connection are best for your home!

What Type of Internet Service Provider Should I Use in Ontario?

Choosing an internet service provider in Ontario can be a big commitment for a new customer. The truth is that no matter what fancy words the company uses to convince you that they’re the best, you can’t know how their service will hold up in a rural Ontario area until you test it out for yourself. Some have bundled rates and a price-lock for a period of time, only to find one day that your billing price has increased dramatically.

This is especially true in rural areas where internet coverage can be spotty and subject to availability. Even when you find internet service providers who offer “no contract” options, you’re still signing up to pay for a month of the internet that may or may not work.

We have seen other dish network companies hand out large termination fees to clients who didn’t like their internet services, even after they got bad results back from their speed tests.

WaveDirect is the only rural internet service provider available in Ontario that offers an absolutely free 30-day trial no strings attached. So if you try it and aren’t 100% satisfied, you don’t pay a single dime. Our plans range from 5 - 50 Mbps download speeds and we have prices starting at only $59.99 / mo.

Another thing we are very happy to Announce is that all of our Rural Internet Plans are completely UNLIMITED! You never have to worry about an overage fee on your billing account or where your data usage is at towards your data cap. You can now stream worry-free!

Some internet service providers in Ontario neglect to mention that with their so-called, "unlimited packages" while you can keep using the internet as much as you want, after a certain point, your bandwidth speed is “throttled.” this allows them to keep all users online without dropouts, but it really can slow down your speeds.

This means that you can only use the internet at the speeds you paid for up until a certain point. Basically, the only way they can offer so-called “unlimited internet” is by throttling down everyone’s connection, so again, you can have as much “slow internet” as you want. You probably won’t be very happy with this type of service.

Your streaming services will be choppy and frequently buffer, downloads could take hours, and even loading regular web pages will be a struggle. At Wavedirect we ensure we have enough bandwidth for everyone on the network to have not only Unlimited data but at the speeds our customers pay for.

Cable Internet vs DSL Internet

Choosing between a cable internet connection or a DSL connection really comes down to what you want to use your internet and the speed at which you want to do it.

Speed vs Cost

Generally, cable broadband tends to be the faster option, while DSL is less expensive. If you do a lot of online gaming, video streaming, or big downloads, you’re going to be disappointed with DSL speeds. Cable broadband uses a coaxial cable (the same cord that’s probably plugged into your tv right now) and the DOCSIS technology of cable companies. DOCSIS is cheap to upgrade and has been frequently and regularly updated for the past 15 years, so speeds are likely to only continue to go up in the future.

However, if you generally use your internet connection to check your email, visit a few websites, and watch the occasional YouTube video, then you won’t really notice a difference between the high bandwidth speeds offered by cable broadband and the less expensive but serviceable speeds of a DSL connection.

Those high bandwidth speeds may look enticing, but unless you’re going to be using your connection for something that requires speed, you won’t be able to tell the difference.

Bit Caps vs “Unlimited” Data for Cable Internet & DSL

Cable Internet

Another that comes up is just how much you’re going to be using your internet. One drawback of cable broadband internet is that that internet service providers tend to put data caps on your internet usage.

When you reach your data cap, the service provider usually charges you a set fee and then tacks on another 50 to 250 GB of data, depending on your contract. Other cable broadband providers just throttle your data to nearly unusable speeds until your month resets, and they bring you back to the speed you paid for.

At WaveDirect we are completely unlimited for our cable internet and will NOT throttle your connection unless you severely abuse the internet.

DSL Internet

Now with DSL connections they tend to be very difficult to reach any reasonable data cap, so you essentially get “unlimited” bandwidth, but if you try to use that bandwidth to download 100GB of music, books, or movies then you’re probably going to be waiting all month for it to finish anyway, thus never reaching your BitCap in megabyte (MB), but not doing to much with the internet, either. It's all about fast speeds.

Getting the Most from Your Internet Provider

Making the decision between a cable broadband internet access or a DSL broadband connection comes down to your needs, and what you’re going to be using your internet connection for.

If your current needs are small, like just setting up some wifi hotspots but you plan to start online gaming or streaming movies and live tv shows from Netflix, then you might want to compare the contract terms between different internet service providers to see if you’ll be able to make the switch whenever your internet usage is about to go up.

But it also depends on what is available to you. If you happen to live close to an internet service provider's central office, then you may be able to get a connection that can sustain online gaming for a bit cheaper than cable broadband.

Do some research and get a good estimate of just how much data you’re likely to use each month. Estimate on the high side, but be realistic. If you only game once a week, you probably don’t need the fastest connection available. If you’re just checking emails, cable broadband is just going to burn a hole in your wallet.