T1 Pricing And Types Of Service
LDU rates for dedicated accounts are usually 10-40% less than regular switched long distance rates. Interstate rates have recently been in the 2 to 3 cent per minute range.
The last DS-0 channel is sometimes used to handle other applications, such as a connection with the local telephone network or routing to a hold queue until 1 of the 23 channels opens up. Call Centers are the most frequent users of PRI Voice Service. T1 PRI service leaves 23 channels available for voice calls.
Integrated T1 service is just what the name implies: both voice and data traffic on the same T1. Since you have 24 channels (23 with PRI) to work with, you can divide up the load according to the business need. For example, a firm may allocate 8 DS-0 lines for Voice, and 16 DS-0 lines for Internet Access.
In this example, the firm could handle 8 simultaneous calls while surfing the web at a speed of 1024 KBPS. Each supplier has specific numbers of channels that they can supply for voice on each T1.
If your organization requires constant connectivity to another office location, you should consider Point-to-Point T1 service. This is the same as regular T1 service, except now you have a Local Loop on 2 ends instead of just 1. This increases the cost of the monthly recurring local loop charge, but calls (or data transfer) between these two points is unlimited, with full T1 duplex speed.
Frame Relay is for businesses requiring constant connectivity between 2 or more locations. Unlike Point-to-Point, you can select sub-T1 speeds between each satellite location and the main office. This reduces cost and allows for future upgrades in speed on an as-needed basis.
"Burstable DS1" and "Burstable DS3" works much like Fractional and Full T1, but the bandwidth is not dedicated; it is provided "on demand" or dynamically and may be a little cheaper. Although Burstable DS3 service can be cost effective, currently, we find that the typical pricing for Burstable T1 overage is so high that it usually makes more sense to purchase service at the next higher Fixed, Fractional, Full or Bonded T1 bandwidth.
Fractional T1 service is dedicated service using a fraction of the full T1 capacity, for example, 512 Kbps. 768 Kbps, 1024 Kbps, etc.; Fractional DS3 service is service using a fraction of the full DS3 capacity, for example, 5 Mbps, 6 Mbps, 10 Mbps, etc.
Dedicated service using two or more T1s tied together to effectively give a higher capacity line. For example, a Dual/Bonded T1 has 3 Mb x 3 Mb of capacity.
That notation means 3 Mb up the line and 3 Mb down the line. Normally, the bonded lines will come into a router specially configured to connect to the multiple T1s and to treat them as though they are one pipe.
DS-3 (or T-3) service consists of 28 T1s giving a total bandwidth of 44.736 Mbps or a total of 672 voice channels.
