Download speed discrepancy

[ThisIsMyName]

Why do all the download speed test sites tell me my connection is around 15mb/s, yet in reality i haven't been able to download anything faster than 1.2mb/s.

 

[drorpheus]

Your speed is about right, 1.2mbps download would be roughly a 12mb/s internet speed. 15mb/s would give you 1.5mbps download, you basically move the decimal place over 1 to the left for what your actual speed is. 1mb/s DSL will give you 100kbps download speed where as 768k dsl should give you 76kbps. Your pretty much in the upper bracket of high speed internet, to get 15mbps download you would essentially need a 150mb/s connection speed, comcast has 100mb/s for like $299/mo in the u.s.

 

[ubizubi]

Bytes vs bits

just as further nerdy clarification, internet speeds are stated in megabits (Mb)/second and we generally watch downloads in megaBytes (MB)/second. Each byte is made of 8 bits, so your speed is about right.