By now, everyone in America has heard the term ‘fiber optics’ being thrown around. Although many people still don’t know what that is, many moredo know that it is synonymous with speed and efficiency. Although fiber optics may seem new to most of America, the technology is over 100 years old. For home services like cable tv, internet, and home phone, it has been in use for over 25 years!
A fiber optic line (in the world of TV, internet and phone) is another type of wire like the coaxial cable line and the telephone line. Telephone lines are usually made of copper and they generate an electrical signal that can be weakened by electromagnetic interference. Telephone lines, which are used by telephone companies like AT&T and Verizon (not referring to their wireless division), have the square-like jack at the end. Coaxial cable lines are also made of copper and they generate an electrical signal but weakening of the signal by electromagnetic interference is less of a problem. Coaxial cable lines, which are used by cable companies like Comcast and Time Warner Cable, have an N connector at the end (the end that you screw into the back of your TV). Fiber optic lines, on the other hand, are made of fiber glass and they transmit light signals. The speed of light is 186,000 miles per second!
So what companies use the fiber optic lines?…. You might, by process of elimination, answer satellite companies like Dish Network and Direct TV but that would be incorrect. Satellite companies (as explained in this Cable vs Satellite post) borrow the coaxial cable lines inside your home to provide you the direct broadcast signal. In all actuality there is no TV, internet, or phone company that ‘owns’ the fiber optic technology. The companies that use fiber optics are the same ones that use telephone lines and coaxial cable lines. Yes, cable companies and telephone companies actually use two technologies to provide you with service.
Both telephone companies and cable TV companies have invested money into being able to use fiber optic lines in conjunction with their existing network. You may have heard of brands like U-verse and Xfinity. U-verse is the brand name for A&T’s use of fiber optics and Xfinity is Comcast’s brand name for their use of fiber optics. With either company, investments have been made to upgrade a lot of their network to using primarily fiber optic lines. Whichever company you choose or have available, fiber optics brings the following wonderful things to your home:
- Better digital quality with HD programming closer to that of blue ray
- Faster internet speeds for gaming, home business and the use of multiple computers
- Clearer and cheaper phone service through digital technology (Currently, a traditional home phone uses analog signals to make phone calls. Home phones that use digital signals instead of analog signals are cheaper because no third party verification is needed to provide you long distance service, among other things)
Of course, there is a lot more to fiber optics than what I’ve listed here but for now that is enough information. I mean, what’s more important than HD and fast internet anyway?… J
