Everybody has heard of cable and ADSL Internet connections. But there's one more player in the UK broadband industry that's worth checking out. If residential users are fine getting a regular ADSL connection, businesses are more inclined to get T1 connections for their Internet connectivity needs. T1 or T-carriers are digital fiber optic or copper lines that carries 24 digital channels that can transfer data at a speed of 1.544 megabits per second - a speed that's 60 times faster than the lines ADSL and cable broadband use. The channels it has are also capable of carrying voice signals for all your telecommunication needs.

The reason why T1 or the more advanced T3 connections are popular only in a business setup, and not residential consumers, is because of the start-up costs it requires. A T1 installation and subscription package is priced anywhere from $1,000 to $1,500 per month and of course, it all depends as to who provides the service and where it is supposed to be installed. T1 costs a lot because one end has to be set up on the subscriber's location. The other is going to be connected directly to the web server with no taps and no sharing. Each subscriber will have his own exclusive, dedicated line.

T1 connections are pricey because it basically is a private line that is exclusive for the use of all subscribers. The line it uses is not a free-for-all channel similar to that of an ADSL or cable Internet service. To maximize its use, it is advisable that only 20 to 50 sub-lines should are to share it. But then again, in a certain office setup where there are more than a hundred employees, they encounter minimal or no problem at all, even if they are all downloading files, videos, and mp3's simultaneously.