Walk down any Nairobi estate today and you'll see a tangle of dishes, antennas, and newly-buried fiber ducts all selling you the same promise: fast, unlimited internet. But under the marketing, wireless and fiber behave very differently. Here's how to pick without regret.

1. How the two technologies actually work

Wireless internet (also called fixed-wireless or radio link) beams data from a tower to a small dish on your roof. It's shared with every other subscriber on that tower.

Fiber internet runs a dedicated strand of glass fiber from the ISP's network all the way to your wall. Light pulses carry your data — there's no weather, no line-of-sight, no neighbours slowing you down.

2. Speed and consistency

Advertised speeds are often similar. Real-world speeds are not. A 20 Mbps wireless link can easily drop to 3–5 Mbps during peak evening hours because everyone on the tower is streaming at once. A 20 Mbps fiber line delivers 20 Mbps at 9pm on a Saturday — because it's yours.

3. Latency (the gamer and Zoom test)

Fiber typically gives you 5–15 ms of latency. Wireless usually sits at 30–80 ms, sometimes worse in rain. For Zoom, CS:GO, FIFA, or any live-call work, that difference is the gap between "smooth" and "please repeat that".

4. Weather

Kenya has real rain. Wireless links degrade during heavy downpours — physics, not a fault. Fiber runs underground or on poles; rain doesn't touch the glass.

5. Installation time

This is wireless's genuine advantage: a good installer can get you online in 2–4 hours. Fiber, if it's not already passing your street, might take days or weeks of civil work. Always ask your ISP if fiber is already live in your area.

6. Price

In 2026 Kenyan shillings, entry-level fiber is now basically the same price as wireless — often cheaper per-Mbps. The old "fiber is premium, wireless is budget" story is gone.

Verdict

If fiber is available on your street, choose fiber. Every time. If it's not, decent wireless is a reasonable bridge — but ask your ISP when fiber is coming, and switch the day it arrives.

Netvanta runs both technologies across our coverage areas in Nairobi and surrounds. Call 0141 107 771 and we'll check what's live at your exact address before you pay a shilling.