AT&T’s high-speed gigabit internet service known as Gigapower is now available in San Antonio. The service launched Monday for a limited number of customers.
Gigabit internet is fast. Fast enough to download an entire movie in three seconds. It’s a highly sought connection for tech companies and many consumers. AT&T is the first company to provide it in the Alamo City.
In its first day of operation, AT&T was unable to say how many people were immediately able to connect and where they are located. The homes likely to have first access already have a fiber line connected to AT&T’s neighborhood node, a sort-of central connection point for nearby homes and businesses. Other properties may have an older copper line which is not capable of gigabit speeds.
“That’s what Gigapower is, it’s fiber from end to end,” Larry Evans general manager of South Texas with AT&T. “We’ve got to get your light speeds from home all the way to the plant. That difference is what takes the time right now, getting each home built off of that node that’s in your neighborhood.
In an informal survey conducted by TPR on social media, about 60 Bexar County residents checked to see if their home addresses could connect to AT&T’s Gigapower. About eleven surveyed said they have access to Gigapower. Most of them are on in far west Bexar County. The gigabit internet alone will cost consumers about $70 per month. Google announced it is also launching a fiber internet service in San Antonio but the rollout date is unknown.
