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The People's Voice: How Readers Rate Cable and DSL

We asked 500 PC World readers with broadband connections* to tell us what they thought about their service. Neither form of high-speed access emerged as the clear winner--but all in all, most users were happy:

Setup

Advantage: Cable 54 percent of cable customers had the necessary equipment installed within a week of the time they placed the order; 91 percent got it within three weeks. Only 17 percent of DSL users were up and running that quickly; 15 percent were still waiting after six weeks.

Reliability

Advantage: DSL 38 percent of DSL users said they notice significant connection slowdowns no more than once a month. Just 22 percent of cable users see delays that rarely.

Overall Satisfaction

Toss-up: 86 percent of DSL users say the service is worth the money that they spend for it; 87 percent of cable customers feel the same way.

Monthly Cost

Toss-up: 93 percent of all respondents spend less than $60 per month for either type of broadband service.

*Of survey respondents who have no broadband connection, 42 percent said the cost was too high; 37 percent said broadband wasn't available in their area. Only 6 percent said they didn't need a fast Net connection.