Independent California ISP Sonic.net (see our user reviews) started offering ADSL2+ service over their own network last fall, offering tiers in 6Mbps, 8Mbps and 18Mbps flavors. In recent tests in their labs, the ISP tells us the carrier was able to obtain ADSL2+ speeds of 46 Mbps downstream and 4.8Mbps upstream. Of course that was on short loop lengths in a lab environment, but Sonic users living in the real world should be happy to know the company is now offering line-bonded 30 Mbps ADSL2+ starting this week.

According to the Sonic website, the new 30 Mbps "Fusion" tier comes with 2 Mbps upstream, for $80 a month standalone. The company offers a $5 discount if their service is bundled with Verizon Wireless, or a $10 discount if the service is bundled with DirecTV. "For customers who want a standard voice line delivered with Fusion, that service will be available soon," says the company.

Yes, fiber is the future. Yes, that 2 Mbps upstream is looking ragged for a "next-generation" higher end broadband offering. But Sonic.net earns some brownie points for not only remaining in business in the face of deep-pocketed, lobby-centric mega-carriers, but building out their own network with said carriers working against them. They also consistently snag good reviews from our users, and just got done lowering prices. The carrier could have pulled a Speakeasy and abandoned their residential users, but they didn't. And hey, Macworld seems impressed.

Jasper isn't oblivious to the fact that fiber is the future. "Delivery over copper in the last mile makes sense for us today because the copper is there, and there is new technology that allows us to drive it faster (ADSL2+, Annex M, and pair bonding.)," says Jasper in a recent post in our forums. "Obviously this isn't the end-game, and I do believe it's inevitable that everyone will be served with fiber in the long run."