SIP Trunks vs EoC vs T1

Time was, not so long ago, that your choices for a dedicated symmetrical bandwidth business line were anything you want... as long as it is a T1. That’s all changed the last few years. Now you shop around to compare T1 with newer Ethernet over Copper and Sip Trunks.

What about DSL, Cable, satellite and 3G wireless? They don’t fall into this category because they are based on shared rather than dedicated bandwidth and asymmetrical rather than symmetrical bandwidth. Likewise, DS3, SONET and Ethernet over Fiber aren’t in the same league because they offer much higher bandwidths at proportionally higher prices.

Still, If you like Ethernet over Copper you’ll like Ethernet over Fiber as you move up in bandwidth. DS3 and SONET are higher bandwidth versions of T1 lines. SIP trunks can be any bandwidth over fiber as well as copper. Let’s take a closer look at the similarities and differences among SIP Trunks, EoC and T1 lines.

T1 lines are the granddaddy of business telecom digital lines. They run at a fixed bandwidth of 1.5 Mbps. Fractional T1 lines have been sold, but you don’t see these as much any more. In fact, 1.5 Mbps is considered entry level for most businesses. If you need or want more bandwidth, you can bond multiple T1 lines together to get bandwidths from 3 to 12 Mbps.

T1 lines also come in different flavors. T1 point to point service connects two business locations with a private line. Some companies set up their own multi-location networks by connecting each branch location to headquarters with one or more T1 lines. A router at HQ then directs communications among all the sites.

T1 dedicated Internet service is a T1 line that connects to the Internet at 1.5 Mbps. Lots of companies got their first Internet service via a single T1 line. The advantage of using T1 for this is that your upload and download bandwidths are the same and the bandwidth never varies. You may still experience congestion on the Internet itself.

T1 telephone service uses a single T1 line channelized into 24 separate phone lines. It replaces multiple analog lines for key telephone and PBX phone systems. Each line is responsible for signaling and two-way audio. A newer variation on T1 telephone is ISDN PRI. This is a T1 line that offers 23 channels plus a separate control and signaling channel that handles these jobs for the other 23. The result is faster call setup and tear down plus the inclusion of data like Caller ID.

Ethernet over Copper (EoC) is similar to T1 in that it uses ordinary copper pairs that may previously carried analog business phone service. The differences are that EoC can carry much higher bandwidths than T1 or bonded T1 from 3 Mbps on up to 45 Mbps or higher. The tradeoff is that you need to be close to the telco office to get the higher speeds. If you can, EoC will give you at least twice the bandwidth for the same money as T1 and bonded T1. You can order it as a private point to point connection or a dedicated Internet service.

SIP Trunking is a slight different animal. The primary purpose of a SIP Trunk is to transport VoIP phone calls between your location and your service provider’s. Most often, lower speed SIP Trunks are partitioned to carry both phone conversations and broadband Internet. Class of Service (CoS) is tagged to telephone and data packets so that they don’t interfere. SIP Trunking can be a cost saver over separate data and telephone services.

Which digital line service is right for your company? Compare bandwidth, features and prices on SIP Trunks, Ethernet over Copper and T1 lines available for your business location.

Disruptive Metro Ethernet over Fiber Pricing Arrives

Ethernet over Fiber (EoF) has been gaining popularity with large organizations as a replacement for more expensive SONET fiber optic services. For smaller and medium size companies, the mere mention of the term “fiber” suggests pricing that is way over budget. Today that’s all changed. The era of affordable fiber optic bandwidth has arrived.

What’s responsible for prices per Mbps or Gbps that can be half of what you’d expect to pay or less? It’s a source you would never expect... Cable TV. Cable? Isn’t that for consumers?

Yes it is. But behind the scenes there’s another Cable network you probably didn’t know even existed. It’s a professional fiber optic core network that’s the equal of any carrier and with a service footprint larger than most.

When we think of Cable TV, we think of the coaxial wire that plugs into a set top box or cable modem. At one time, all cable networks were constructed almost completely of copper coax strung on poles around town and trenched through the back yard. That was the era of Analog Cable. What’s happened over the years is that this network architecture has evolved into a combination of fiber optic and copper called HFC or Hybrid Fiber Coax that supports the newer digital services.

HFC uses fiber optics for the long runs that bring service into a business or residential neighborhood. It also runs between cities for large Cable MSOs (Multi-System Operators) like Comcast. Most of the traffic on that fiber is television video, but there is so much bandwidth available that it also easily transports data from 10 Mbps on up to 10 Gbps.

Comcast has recognized that their nationwide network runs past businesses as well as consumers. Many smaller businesses take advantage of the excellent pricing on Cable broadband brought in on coaxial cable to a cable modem. It’s quite possible to get 50 Mbps or even 100 Mbps asymmetrical shared bandwidth for the same pice as a T1 line.

Asymmetrical means that the download speed is much higher than the upload speed. Typically that’s a 10x bandwidth difference. This is common for Internet access, but different from business telecom services that are generally symmetrical or the same speed for both upload and download.

Comcast’s Ethernet over Fiber bandwidth services are symmetrical and intended for Enterprise applications. There are 4 services you’ll be interested in. They are Ethernet Dedicated Internet (EDI), Ethernet Private Line (EPL), Ethernet Virtual Private Line (EVPL) and Ethernet Data Network / Meshed Network (EDN). All of these services are available in bandwidths from 10 Mbps to 10 Gbps.

Ethernet Dedicated Internet gives you the Internet access you need to support large employee user bases and connectivity with customers worldwide. Dedicated means that the bandwidth you order is always available for your use. That differs from shared bandwidth that is common for consumer services and wireline cable modems.

Ethernet Private Line (EPL) is a point to point connection service. You may be using T1 lines for linking two business locations now and wishing you had more bandwidth. EPL using Ethernet over Fiber can give you the higher bandwidth you need immediately with nearly unlimited growth potential for the future.

Ethernet Virtual Private Line (EVPL) is another Ethernet private line service. It is similar to EPL, but allows multiple Ethernet services on the same physical line and UNI (User Network Interface). These come in on EVCs or Ethernet Virtual Connections. What the virtualization does is let you run Ethernet Private Lines out to each of several business locations without having to pay for multiple fiber or wireline terminations at headquarters.

Ethernet Data Network / Meshed Network (EDN) lets you establish a large Metro or Wide Area Network to interconnect LANs for your branch offices or other business locations. As a meshed network, you have any to any connectivity. This is similar to might set up with a Frame Relay or MPLS network.

Are you ready for fiber optic bandwidths but not fiber optic service prices? Depending on locations, you may be in position to benefit from the enormous cost advantage of HFC based Ethernet over Fiber bandwidth services. Get pricing and availability before you sign up for anything else.