News

Say Goodbye to traditional copper. Hellooo Fiber!

With everyone uploading and downloading, posting to their favorite social media sites and streaming their favorite shows, it’s become so hard to imagine a life without Internet.

But for many, that’s is still the reality. Nationally, up to 40 percent of households do not have an Internet connection. Today, most homes still utilize copper wiring which plays a major part in Internet speeds.

When Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone over 100 years, the dominant way to wire a home was with the use of copper wiring. At the time, copper wiring was perfect for voice signals, which it was designed for. But as society advanced and technology evolved, copper didn’t really keep up. Now, new technology requires devices to last longer, without losing service.

As copper comes to the end of its lifespan, fiber optics will pick up where it left off.

That’s where Race comes in. Our fiber optic products offer symmetrical speeds as much as 1000 times faster than local cable providers. At Race, we depend on fiber optics’ reliability to keep you connected.

Fiber optics is a flexible, transparent glass wiring almost slightly thicker than the human hair that is designed to for a faster transmission. Although fiber optic isn’t a new technology (it’s been around since the 1980s), using fiber optic wiring for telecommunications didn’t really take off until the 1990s. Unlike copper, fiber uses light to transmit data.

But fibers optics wasn’t always the “go-to” wiring for connecting devices. Due to expensive pricing, copper was always the first choice. As fiber optics pricing drops and starts to match copper, it has become accessible to everyone and some experts believe fiber optics will be around for the next 50-80 years.

So what are some of the core difference between copper and fiber?

-Copper is mainly designed for voice signal connections, making it very limited and slower for bandwidth.

-Traditional copper cable wiring uses underground network cables to transmit to the subscriber’s homes. Making it harder to change to replace the lines when they’ve aged. (We’ve seen this problem time and time again)

-Installing copper wire is a trickier process than installing fiber.

-Fiber almost travels at the speed of light! That’s pretty quick and one of the main advantages

-It’s hard to believe, but fiber optics are actually more resistance and durable although they’re made from glass. Copper is a conduct and when it gets wet, that leads to more deterioration of the wiring.

-Also, upgrading fiber for both the provider and homeowner is an easier process to replace versus replacing copper.

Today’s applications demand faster speeds and fiber is a great option. With providers such as Race, fiber-to-the-home is becoming a reality in communities across California, bridging the Digital Divide.