Comcast promises 160 Mbit broadband

Cable companies aren’t known as nimble innovators, but Comcast Corp. is out to change that perception this year with ultra-high-speed Internet service, more high-definition content and gadgets that link video, phone and broadband services. “We’re about innovation and having the best network,” Chief Executive Brian Roberts told The Associated Press in a preview of his speech at the Consumer Electronics show on Tuesday. Roberts is expected to demonstrate a technology that delivers up to 160 megabits of data per second: It will allow him to download a high-definition copy of “Batman Begins” in four minutes.

The technology, DOCSIS 3.0, will start rolling out this year. “If it’s as successful as we hope, in 2009 and beyond we will have it available in millions of homes,” he said. Cable systems largely enable download speeds up to 10 Mbps — compared with up to 50 Mbps from Verizon’s fiber-optic service FiOS. Roberts said Comcast plans to offer more than 1,000 high-definition videos this year, including up to 300 movies on demand that may be free or included in a subscription or a pay-per-view service. It seems all very nice, but these promises often results in nothing.

Source: CNN

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!! 160Mbit...... This is both the best as well as the worst news i have heard all day. Best coz it gives us hope that someday consumers in india will get atleast 1/10th the speeds that american consumers get. The worst we coz I know that it's gonna take forever for that to happen. Imagine, downloading a High Def movie in 4 minutes. Jeez, we cant download a song in 4 min let alone a movie.
For example, at best most provider's in india provide speeds of upto 4Mbps. Only catch is that these speeds are dependant upon number of people using the line in the area and there's no unlimited plans. The maximum unlimited plans as far as i know is for a 256Kbps connection which totally sucks. Oh well, its better than the 64Kbps which was avlb earlier. We are slowly yet surely moving ahead. Its the pace which bothers me. Move faster people. I would like to see download speeds of 500Kb/s sooner rather than later. People are willing to pay, dunno why they dont have plans for higher speeds and unlimited download.

P.s If anybody is reading this do leave a comment. I mean even "its greek to me" will do. Also since i am shamelessly marketing my blog, feel free to do the same. Tell your technologically challenged friends to visit. Who knows, maybe someday it will start making sense to them?

Cheers