Compare Broadband Connection Types in NZ – which is best for your home?

Choosing a broadband connection speed that won’t slow you down is becoming increasingly vital in 2020. The best plan for you will depend on where you live and whether you plan to spend your time on the internet sending email, downloading music, streaming videos, or gaming.

Need some help figuring out which broadband speed is right for you? Take a look at our handy comparison table below. The table outlines how different types of broadband plans shape up in real life in New Zealand.

Compare the performance of Fibre, VDSL, ADSL and Wireless broadband connections

Factors to consider when choosing your connection speed:

Bandwidth

Bandwidth refers to the volume of data that your internet connection can carry. An internet connection with a larger bandwidth can move a set amount of data much faster than an internet connection with a lower bandwidth.

How much bandwidth do you need? Well it depends on how many people use broadband in your home and whether they are checking email, surfing the internet, streaming content or gaming.  Key aspects to consider are:

• Peak Download speed: Download speeds measure how quickly data is transferred from one device to another via the internet. Downloading doesn’t just happen when you request to download a file, it also happens when you open browse the internet, check email, watch a video, play online games, or do any general browsing.
   
• Peak Upload Speed: Upload speeds measure how data can be transferred from your computer or device via the internet. Upload speed is important for activities like posting photos on social media, publishing content like videos on YouTube, or using video conferencing apps like Skype or Zoom, or playing online games.
   
• The number of connected devices: This can add up quickly if you include computers, tablets, phones, TVs, and smart appliances - especially if there are a few people living in the house.

Performance

To measure performance, we looked at peak download speed compared it to each connection types’ advertised speed. This is because the advertised speeds are usually the maximum speed you will be able to achieve, so it is important to know how these perform in real homes. 

Just a note on Gigabit Fibre – these plans usually advertise a maximum speed of 900-950Mbps. The actual speed you receive in practice will depend on your local network, and the technical set up within your home (eg: cables and router used).  A Gigabit fibre plan performing at 70% capacity will still be several times faster than a Fibre 100 connection.

Streaming Content

The demand for bandwidth has increased as more people have started streaming TV shows on apps like Netflix, On Demand or DisneyPlus in UHD and HD. This means you’ll need fast internet speeds to cope with the extra data required when streaming video.

• % of users who can stream Netflix in ultrahigh definition (UHD):  Nearly all homes on a Fibre 100 or ‘Gigabit’ connection are able to stream in ultrahigh definition. If you are on a VDSL, ADSL or Wireless, streaming quality will depend on where you live – for example how far you are from the telephone exchange or cellphone tower and number of users connected at peak times.
• HD streaming: stands for High Definition streaming. Netflix recommends around 15-20Mbs per device to stream HD movies. If you have a slower connection, around 5Mbs per device you may start to experience some buffering(a pause in streaming while the video loads)

Compare broadband plans

At Broadband Compare we can help you compare the broadband plans available at your address to make an informed choice about the best plan for your address. Simply enter your address into our address checker to compare the plans, introductory offers, add-ons and benefits available at your home.

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Data sources

(1)  Peak Download speed: These figures were sourced from the Figure 1 of the Commerce Commission’s Measuring Broadband New Zealand report. The report was based on speed tests from 15^th September – 14^th October 2019.

(2) Peak Upload Speed: These figures were sourced from the Figure 2 of the Commerce Commission’s Measuring Broadband New Zealand report. The report was based on speed tests from 15^th September – 14^th October 2019.

(3) Performance: These figures were sourced from the Figure 4 of the Commerce Commission’s Measuring Broadband New Zealand report. The report was based on speed tests from 15^th September – 14^th October 2019.

(4) % of users who can stream Netflix in ultrahigh definition (UHD): These figures were sourced from the Figure 10 of the Commerce Commission’s Measuring Broadband New Zealand report. The report was based on speed tests from 15^th September – 14^th October 2019.