It doesn't take a genius to work out that those surfing during peak times of the day, when most people are online, will experience slower broadband performance. Never the less, comparison site Broadband-Expert has found that speeds slowdown to nearly half their average between the hours of 7pm and 9pm in the evening.

The research based on over 72,000 speed tests carried out between January and May 2008 has revealed that the average speed slows down to 2.5Mbps between 7pm and 9pm. By comparison the fastest speeds of 4.2Mbps are between 2am and 3am in the morning when least people are online.

Speeds varied massively by provider and the type of technology used. VirginMedia's Cable broadband service recorded a low of 5.1Mbs between 7pm and 8pm and a high of 9.1Mbs between 2am and 3am. By comparison, ADSL broadband providers slowed to an average of 1.96Mbs from 7pm to 9pm compared to a high of 2.7Mbs between 2am to 3am.

ADSL2+ providers, advertising some of the fastest broadband speeds, including O2, Be and UK Online showed the least variation in speeds with a low of 6.4Mbs between 7pm and 9pm compared to 7.3Mbs between 2am and 3 am. Though this may be more to do with the strength of those ISPs than the technology they use.