What’s Line of Sight Broadband?

August 19, 2019 - by Jack Mitchell

Does your business suffer because fast internet isn’t available in your area? Line of sight broadband could be the solution to your problems.

Line of sight broadband is an over-the-air connectivity solution ideal for businesses unable to get fast wired broadband in their area. A connection is established using two radios: a receiver on your building and a radio attached to our transmitter. 

A truly wireless option, line of sight broadband is a superfast internet solution used to provide impressive speeds to businesses that don’t have good broadband available in their area.

Is line of sight an option for your business? Find out with our FREE survey. We’ll tell you what broadband solutions are available in your area and whether we can provide you with a cost-effective over-the-air solution. 

FREE Broadband Check

Find out which broadband solutions are available to your business with our FREE broadband check service.

With a few details, we can check which broadband solutions are available to your business. Contact us today to speak to one of the friendly Optionbox team.

Check Your Broadband Options

How Does Line of Sight Broadband Work?

A wireless leased line, or fixed wireless, differs from most internet circuits because we establish it using purely wireless technology.

No cables are involved, like there are with circuits such as ADSL and leased lines. Instead, fixed wireless depends on radio frequencies delivered from a base station with wireless capability to a receiver.

Usually, a base station will be a mast owned by your chosen internet provider. They will attach a receiver to your building, which will receive radio frequencies from the base station.

The base station will receive and send radio signals to the receiver on your building. The receiver on your building will act as an access point, and it will usually be on top of your building or in another high-altitude position.

Why is Line of Sight a Great Option?

A line of sight internet circuit could be the best option for your business, depending on a number of important factors.

There are numerous advantages of this type of internet circuit, such as:

  • Completely Wireless
  • Low Installation Costs
  • Low Maintenance and Ongoing Expenses
  • Quick Installation Time
  • Superfast Speeds

We are going to delve deeper into some of the aforementioned benefits, enabling you to decide whether a line of sight option is right for your business.

Completely Wireless

Fast broadband typically requires installing cabling if cabling isn’t already in place. Even solutions such as FTTC and FTTP can end up being very expensive to set up if cabling needs to be installed.

A wireless line can provide you with superfast speeds without any cabling required. All you need for a wireless line is a clear line of sight, a transmission point and a receiver point.

Low Installation Costs

Because line of sight broadband is a completely wireless solution, installation costs are typically low.

If you need fast speeds without the expense of installing cabling, this could be the best option for your business.

Low Maintenance and Ongoing Expenses

Some internet circuits can be costly even after initial installation.

Some internet circuits have high ongoing expenses or simply require a lot of maintenance on a regular basis. A wireless line of sight solution requires little maintenance and doesn’t typically have high monthly expenses attached.

Physical circuits can become damaged or inoperable for a number of reasons. As a wireless solution, broadband established wirelessly removes a lot of the typical problems that can impact physical lines.

Quick Installation Time

When compared with internet circuits that require a lot of planning and installation of cabling, a line of sight solution can be installed relatively quickly.

The primary reason for quick installation is the lack of cabling involved. We simply need to check that a line of sight can be constantly established and then install our innovative line of sight technology to provide you with superfast speeds.

Superfast Speeds

As we establish wireless lines ourselves without outside organisations involved, we can offer brilliant speeds for your business.

While speeds differ based on the requirements of your business, the technology we use is capable of supporting speeds from 10Mbps to 2Gbps.

As with traditional leased lines, you can choose the speeds you want. Due to SLAs that we have in place, you have peace of mind that you will enjoy the speeds you are paying for.

Is Line of Sight Broadband Always the Best Option?

Wireless lines clearly have plenty of benefits. However, there are still some factors that impact whether a wireless line is the best line for your business.

Here’s some important information to consider when thinking about line of sight broadband:

  • Transmission distance is limited
  • Clear line of sight is necessary

Could the above factors impact whether line of sight broadband is right for your business? Here’s a closer look in some more detail.

Transmission distance is limited

Fixed wireless is microwave-based technology that enables the high-speed sending of data between two fixed locations. However, wireless signals can only be sent over a limited distance.

If you are located miles and miles from the mast that you want to receive wireless signals from, your building could be too far away.

In some cases, line of sight can technically be established but the distance between the sending and receiving point is too great for data to be reliably sent.

Clear line of sight is necessary

If a clear line of sight is not available, the establishment of a wireless connection is impossible.

Regardless of where your building is located in relation to the mast, if there is no line of sight then data can not be sent from point to point.

The drawbacks of fixed wireless are few, but they are major determining factors when choosing the right internet circuit for your business.

Is Fixed Wireless Secure?

Security crosses a lot of minds when fixed wireless is considered. How can an all-wireless connection be secure when compared with a physical line that goes from point to point and nowhere else?

Usually, you will find that fixed wireless solutions using line of sight technology are more secure than typical internet circuits.

The wireless components that we use to establish a link between your building and our mast do not allow for open access.

Because the components we use are designed for the secure transmission of data, encryption standards are far higher than those used by traditional internet circuits.

We make use of advanced technologies which allow us to further secure fixed wireless connections. Using a range of different security strategies, we can ensure that all data transmission is completely inaccessible to the public.

Where Can Line of Sight Broadband be Established?

Where can fixed wireless actually be established?

Fixed wireless connections can be established anywhere in the world.

As long as a line of sight can be guaranteed between two locations, fixed wireless can be established – even in rural areas.

Here at Optionbox, there are a number of areas that we can personally offer line of sight broadband to using the mast connected to our main office:

  • Gildersome
  • Morley
  • Birstall
  • Batley
  • Dewsbury
  • Leeds

While our mast cannot be used to broadcast data to every location in the UK, we’re experts when it comes to establishing fixed wireless. Therefore, we are free to offer advice and provide professional wireless link solutions using innovative technology regardless of where you are based in the UK.

Superfast Speeds, Without Costly Infrastructure

Fixed wireless solutions using state-of-the-art wireless technology can enable your business to enjoy superfast speeds without the acquisition and installation of costly infrastructure.

If you are interested in finding out more about fixed wireless technology, our blog is packed with useful information and guides. Alternatively, call or email us and we’ll be happy to discuss the technology we use further.

If your current internet circuit isn’t meeting your requirements, we are here to help.

We’re experts when it comes to telecommunications. Optionbox has been established for over 10 years, and the team behind the name have operated in the industry for a combined total of over 50 years.

Access our expertise free of charge. A member of our team can perform an audit of your current broadband and offer advice on a circuit that would suit you better. Leave us a couple of details below and we’ll be in touch shortly to put a date in the diary.

Get Your Free Broadband Review NOW!

Fill in the form below to book in your free broadband review today.

    , , , ,