The t1 line rates is a digital transmission service that can be used for carrying voice and/or data. A T1 connection is sometimes referred to as a "dedicated service" as the service is delivered to and from the customer premise from the CO (Central Office) without combining it with other traffic. A T1 connections is established by providing a "loop" or wire from the users premesis to the CO where the service provider has equipment. Part of the cost of a T1 is the "loop charge" or the monthly rental fee for the wire that is rented from the local phone company. Once the connection reaches the CO it can access the carriers network and reach any destination.

T-1 provides high speed, point-to-point digital transmission line (up to 1.544 Mbps). This can be used as a single high-speed data channel or it can be split into 24 channels and allocated to either voice or data applications. It is widely deployed and readily available in most regions and although the service is not deminished by distance from the CO, the price is sensitive to distance. This is due to the rental of the loop from the LEC (Local Exchante Carrier). T1 is currently the most common way that large companies connect their LAN to the rest of the world.

Are you ready for T1 service? You may be ready if you have critcal services that need a reliable connection to the internet. If you run ASP services, host e-mail servers or web servers, have over 20 people accessing the internet or use video on demand you should consider T1 access. While more expensive that DSL, T1 access is made to support the above applications. Also remember that when you begin shopping for T1 service you should partner with someone who will act as your agent and represent your best interests. Consider using a broker or agent to help you with your search and cut through some of the industry lingo to help you get exactly what you need.

Is it time to upgrade to a T1? There are several factors to consider when examining you current DSL connection and the possiblity of replacing it. For many people the biggest factor is reliability and if reliability is critical to the applications you run over your connection you should seriously consider replacing your DSL connection with a T1. DSL is a quick and cost effective method of acquiring high speed bandwidth however it is not intended to support commercial applications or large numbers of users as is a T1 connections.

Reliability becomes critical when customers or employees depend on your connection for immediate responses. If your customers use your connection to access your databases or your server or the internet then reliability of your connection is critical. If your employees depend on your connections because you host the e-mail server in house or host web servers, your connections is considered critical. A critical connection can be viewed much like a life line, without which your business would be negatively impacted. Your monthly savings of having a sub-par connections will not make up for the loss in productivity of your employees or loss of customers when your DSL connections gets bogged down or cut off. To reiterate, ciritcal connections should be supported with a T1.

Many customers are extremely price sensitive and cannot afford the cost of a T1 which can be as much as 20 times more expensive than a full T1 connection. Residential customers who are most sensitive to price should not consider a T1 circuit unless then have a business reason to pay for such a circuit and cannot access DSL service. Most people don't realize that a DSL connection can be just as fast as a T1 at 1.5Mbps. The shortcoming of DSL is that it is oversubscribed. This means there is a finite amount of bandwidth available and a customers speed can drop if other customers in the neighborhood decide to use their service. SDSL (Synchronous DSL) is a business class DSL and is ranked as a higher priority than residential DSL or ADSL (Asunchronous DSL). This means it is not oversubscribed to the extent than ADSL and is subject to fewer bandwidth restrictions. In short, if price is your critical factor go with DSL. If reliability is the critical factor purchase a dedicated T1.