WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF FIBER OPTICS?
There are many benefits to using fiber optics over other means of transferring data. In the past years, metal wire has been used to transfer data by varying the voltage levels. Fiber optic cables are much better than copper wires when it comes to telecommunications in many areas.
Cost
Fiber optic cables are less expensive than copper wiring due to the production of fiber optic cables being cheaper than production of copper wires. The power required to maintain signals in fiber optics is also less than in copper wires. This means that providers of services spend less money giving out the service which means the consumer spends less money.
Size
Fiber optic cables are smaller in diameter and weigh less than copper wire which means less space is occupied by cables and less work is required to move them. The smaller diameter also means more optical fibers can be packed into the same space a copper wire once took up. This means more phone lines or internet lines can be run in the same amount of space as before.
Quality
The strength of the signal in optical fiber is much better than copper wire due to the fact that fiber optic cables do not interfere with other fiber optic cables. The electrical signal sent through copper wire can interfere with other electrical signals sent in other copper wires. Fiber optics is also more beneficial because its signals are better suited for carrying digital information. This is useful because computer networks work with digital signals which means transferring the data would flow smoothly (Barbour, 2010). The main benefit people notice with fiber optics compared to copper wiring is that fiber optics runs faster than electric signals. Google Fiber advertises fiber optics saying that it can increase internet speeds 100 times faster than before. Fiber optic cables can download a movie in seven seconds compared to the 2 minutes it used to take (Edward, 2012). The pure speed fiber optics offers is enough to get people to pay attention. It is a great benefit people in this generation hold in high regards. In an era where time is precious, the less time taken waiting for a movie to load is better. All these benefits are great, but some issues can restrain the development of fiber optics.
