You have a customer who is about to retire to a rural area o

You have a customer who is about to retire to a rural area of your state and asks you to recommend a broadband Internet connection type that will best work in a sparsely populated area. What do you tell him?

A. DSL is his best option.

B. Cable is his best option.

C. Satellite is his best option.

D. Fiber is his best option.

Solution

C. Satellite broadband connections are the best option in a sparsely populated, rural area for high-speed Internet connections. The other broadband connection types require that the receiver be within a certain distance of the provider, which is unlikely in a rural area. Satellite provides Internet and television signals, but the broadband connection will be substantially slower than either DSL or cable, while still about ten times as fast as a dial-up connection. Satellite service can be disrupted by severe weather conditions. Fiber optic connections have recently become a viable option for the home user and can deliver both Internet and VoIP (Voice over IP) services at speeds far faster than DSL or cable, but this type of connection still requires the customer and provider to be within a specific distance from each other and is not a good fit for a rural environment.