T1/DS1 broadband in Iowa uses two pairs of copper wire for transmission over telephone lines. An ordinary telephone line uses the DS0 transmission protocol, which carries 64 Kbit per second. A T1 line uses the DS1 protocol to combine the equivalent of 24 telephone lines for a total bandwidth of 1.536 Mbit per second.

T1 broadband in Iowa is usually available to private customers in DS0 fractions. However, a small business will typically use a full T1 line to connect to the Internet and a larger business may use multiple T1 lines bundled together.

There are three primary factors to consider when deciding to use T1/DS1 broadband in Iowa:

1. Prices for T1 in Iowa vary in part according to your distance from the carrier’s Point of Presence. The further you are from the carrier’s POP, the more your T1/DS1 line will cost.

2. Major carriers usually own and operate their own networks, generally resulting in the best actual transmission speeds.

3. A channel bank is necessary to separate the DS1 data stream back into the 24 DS0 data packets. This device is relatively expensive to purchase or lease and represents a substantial investment for a small business.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Locate T1 Internet providers in Iowa that sell full T1 service

Provide your employees high-speed capability with broadband. Iowa providers frequently include multiple static IP addresses and email addresses under your domain name.

I recommend: Qwest is a Tier 1 provider that offers full T1 lines. You can obtain pricing and availability information on Qwest's website by submitting your telephone number. Corecomm offers dedicated T1 service for businesses of all sizes and guarantees uptime of 99.5 percent.

Find providers of dedicated T1 in Iowa that specialize in business packages

Get T1 access in Iowa from a provider that can meet your needs now and scale your requirements as your business grows.

I recommend: USA Digital provides fractional and full T1 service to businesses that require reliable and secure connections to the Internet. Verizon has a small business package specifically designed for 20 or fewer employees.

Check out local provider packages for T1 service in Iowa

The local provider connects your business to the carrier's POP. This connection is known as the local loop and represents a substantial component of a T1 line's cost.

I recommend: Digital Warehouse Xpress, or DWX, is in Des Moines and provides businesses with commercial web hosting and connections to DSL and T1 Internet. Iowa is home to Opencom offers T1 and T3 dedicated connections for businesses in Ames and caters to property owners of multi-unit dwellings.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  T1 providers in Iowa will almost always offer substantially faster access than a DSL line of the same rated speed. Providers of T1/DS1 broadband in Iowa rarely oversubscribe their services, meaning that these customers will have access to the full transmission rate of 1.544 Mbps. By contrast, the oversubscription rates for DSL lines routinely exceed 4:1.
• •  T1 access in Iowa also is available as a channeled circuit to allow voice traffic on a portion of the channels. These voice channels may be Primary Rate Interface channels or plain T1. Iowa call centers frequently use PRI lines because they also carry signaling data such as Caller ID and Automatic Number Identification data.