Don't you love those "it depends" answers! With computers though, that's more often the case than not. If you're going to download things like Windows ISO files (3 GB more or less), it takes me 20 min. to download one of those with my 24 mbps wired cable connection, so for me that's the minimum when I'm at home. For streaming video you need something fairly fast, but I can't say where the threshhold would be. For most email and web surfing, you don't need all that much, I'd think 3 mbps would probably be OK.
If you have a laptop or tablet, you could go to a motel or most fast food places and see how that works for you.
Good luck.
Hello everyone.
I'm currently househunting and the internet speeds in the region in which I'm looking are all over the place - and often very prehistoric. What I need to know is, what speed is just NOT going work for me? I am online all the time - emails, sending files, listening to music, researching websites, managing my web pages, watching videos and occasionally TV, etc.
Some of the speeds I'm running into for DSL are as low as 1.5 (which is probably impossible). More average I'm finding "up to" 3 MGs, 5 MGs, 6 MGs. These are on regular telephone lines, not cable telephone.
(I have been accustomed to using 8MGs on a normal phone line and recently 24MGs on a phone cable connection. )
I am hoping someone can tell me whether the above speeds are going to be functional for me or will they drive me to suicide.
Thanks for your help!

Chowhound
Comic Vine
GameFAQs
GameSpot
Giant Bomb
TechRepublic