G.lite (also known as Universal ADSL, and referred to as G.992.2 by the ITU), allows for high-speed “always on” digital communications over standard copper phone lines.
While it is based on the same underlying technology as standard ADSL, G.lite doesn’t require a splitter to be installed at the customer location. The customer simply connects the G.Lite modem — the same way he’d hook-up an analog modem — after he signs up for the service.
Unlike standard ADSL, G.lite works with DLC (Digital Loop Carrier – the local loop infrastructure that connects customers located more than 18,000 feet from the central office), which opens the technology to a much wider audience. The tradeoff for the increased availability of G.lite is lower speed. While standard or full-rate ADSL provides downstream speeds of up to 8-Mbps and upstream speeds of 1.5-Mbps, G.lite is limited to
1.5-Mbps downstream and 512-Kbps upstream.
