Since we started using the Internet, we have seen how browsing speeds have multiplied periodically. Now that 1 Gbps is beginning to be a possibility for the vast majority of homes and some are even trying the 10 Gbps offered by some operators, this amount will soon be multiplied by 10 and 100 Gbps will be a reality.
Google is the one that is making the most progress in this field, with satisfactory tests with 20 Gbps and 100 Gbps “closer than we think”.
Google successfully tests 20 Gbps fiber
Google, through Google Fiber, has successfully tested a 20 Gbps fiber optic network in a Kansas City home, qualifying it as a milestone on the road to delivering symmetric 100 Gbps Internet.
“We started raising that bar even higher in 2021 with the launch of a 2Gbps product (2 gigs down, 1 gig up) at just $100 a month, but we knew that was just the next step in this journey of make multi-gig speeds widely available and accessible. In the coming months, we will have announcements to drastically expand our multi-gigabit tiers. These will be critical milestones in our journey towards a 100 Gig Symmetrical Internet. We are closer than you think. This month, we get our tests out of the lab and into the home.”said the CEO of Google Fiber, Dinni Jain.
Of course, this new solution it won’t be cheap at all. Currently, Google Fiber offers 2 Gbps internet for $99 per month, symmetric 1 Gbps for $70 and will soon expand speeds to 20 Gbps, and in the future 100 Gbps symmetric internet. The monthly cost for 20 Gbps is likely to exceed $1,000 per month, while 100 Gbps could cost around $9,999, although these are estimated and unofficial prices.
As for speeds above 20 Gbps, they have already beaten Google Fiber. Municipal broadband provider EPB in Chattanooga, Tennessee, recently launched a symmetric service of 25Gbps. However, it costs $1,500 per month for residential customers and $12,500 per month for business customers.
Very slow and limited expansion
The bad part of all this is that Google Fiber is, at the moment, an exclusive service for the United States and it will be several years before Google decides to expand its service to other parts of the world. Perhaps they will be encouraged when these new speeds are standardized for the Internet.
After years of stagnation, Google Fiber said last month that it aims to expand its fiber-to-the-home service in five new US states. Starting now, Google’s ISP will offer fiber service in 12 metropolitan areas and wireless home Internet in seven.
