LTE vs Fibre: What’s Best for My Business?
If we had posed the question of LTE vs fibre this time last year, your response may have been a little different to today. If you – like most South African businesses – have a completely different setup now with remote workers, virtual offices, and a shortcut to Zoom on your desktop, then this may be of interest to you.
Today’s businesses need fast internet. Fact.
We also need it to be reliable, and we would prefer not to pay over the odds for a decent service.
So, what should we consider for our unique business needs in 2020?
LTE vs fibre – What is the difference?
We’ve heard the terms, but do we know exactly what they mean?
What is LTE?
So what is LTE and is it worth considering for my business?
Long Term Evolution (LTE) is a wireless broadband communication system and this term is often used synonymously with 4G.
4G wireless speeds are significantly better than the previous generation, and in South Africa we see MTN offering upload speeds of around 8Mbps and an average download speed of 26.4 Mbps. An LTE connection is a technical improvement on a 4G connection, but it is not significant enough to qualify as a new generation upgrade.
Signal Booster breaks it down as follows:
“In layman’s terms, the difference between 4G and LTE is that 4G is faster than LTE. The reason for this is that 4G meets the technical standards designated for it whereas LTE data transfer speed standard is merely a stopgap measure standard devised until the actual 4G speed is realized.
“Can the average consumer tell the difference between 4G and LTE? In most cases, the download speed is comparable unless you reside in a major city. As cellular carriers continue to update their LTE networks, they have closed the gap between LTE and “real 4G”. This is especially true with LTE-A, which is currently the fastest option available.”
What is fibre?
A fibre connection is a physical connection built on fibre optic cables as opposed to copper cables. Fibre is fast – very fast – achieving upload speeds of 300 Mbps on some networks and download speeds of up to 500 Mbps.
Fibre is a fixed line into a home or business connected to a router which multiple devices can successfully connect to.
Which connection is best for my business?
This is a common question, and the answer depends very much on you and how you run your business.
Looking at the features of the two internet solutions, it’s easy to see that fibre has several distinct advantages over 4G/LTE:
- Fibre is up to 10x faster than 4G/LTE
- There is virtually no interference from weather or other outside factors
- It is secure and reliable
- Multiple devices can connect simultaneously
- Fibre is cheaper than mobile connections
Therefore, if you have an office full of people then fibre is your friend. If your team has gone remote, then a fibre connection to their home is a great choice and will allow for regular virtual meetings with no lag.
However, the biggest blow to this argument is that fibre is not available throughout South Africa and is mainly enjoyed in central business hubs and certain high-income suburbs.
When LTE wins
If you are not desk-bound, if your business sees you on the road more often than not, or if you make use of coffee shops to conduct client meetings then a 4G/LTE connection may be a better option for you.
Your phone can connect you anywhere and any time and you only pay for the data that you use. Granted, mobile data is costly here in South Africa, but if your business does not require online meetings, large file transfers, or constantly pulling information from the cloud, then 4G/LTE is the way to go.
Our country enjoys a great mobile network which can reach into remote rural areas with more mobile towers being built all the time.
We’re seeing 5G in South Africa rolling out as we speak, reporting speeds of up to 700 Mbps from Rain. Another exciting leap forward for mobile users, for sure.
Connectivity advice from the professionals
What does your business need: LTE or fibre?
If you have questions or you would like to chat about what package will work best for you, please feel free to call on the Huge team. We look forward to your call.
