Who needs Speedy FTTC ?

Broadband has become more and more necessary to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use every day that rely on broadband connectivity seems to increase. The amount of tablets, smartphones, laptops, desktops, games consoles and TV’s that everyone has in their homes, seems to increase each day.

Gateside Broadband Deals For April 2024

Connection Type	Availablity
FTTC / Fibre / Superfast Broadband	Yes
Cable / Virgin Media	Some Areas
ADSL / Broadband	Yes
4G	Yes

Working from home is commonplace as it saves people being stuck in commuter traffic, something that most of us wish to avoid.

 

 

Quite simply, traditional broadband connections often struggle to deal with the simultaneous demands of downloading large files, streaming videos or music, with multiple devices and appliances signed on all at once. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or local business has the ability to do what they want online– all all at once– with no annoying delays.

What is fast broadband?

Super-fast broadband describes broadband connections of around 300Mbps in the UK.

Super-fast broadband connections enable users to go online , stream music & video and stream television at speeds that are massively more than most internet users.

While the current average UK internet connection is around 12Mbps (2014), superfast broadband products deliver speeds of as much as 300Mbps, through sophisticated fibre-optic cabled networks like Virgin Media and BT’s Infinity fibre optic cables.

How does fibre internet work ?

Unlike most UK broadband connections, which use telephony lines, the UK’s quickest broadband product – the 100Mbps service from Virgin (it’s 200Mbps in some areas) – is delivered by a cable, or fibre-optic, broadband network. These cables are made up of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much quicker than along the copper cables used by traditional xDSL connectivity .

BT also offers an up to 76Mb fibre-optic service called Infinity (you can get 300Mbps in some areas), and plans to make this available to millions more UK residence in in the future .

 

 

The likes of TalkTalk, Sky and EE have piggybacked on BT’s Infinity service to launch rebranded high speed cable broadband products of their own.

However, fast broadband is not exclusively on offer to people in a fibre broadband locations. Fast broadband is not exclusively on offer to people in a fibre-optic broadband area. If you live within a certain range of your internet provider’s exchange you can still get fast internet by registering for selected ADSL2+ internet packages from the likes of O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This form of connection uses the same cables and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL phone-line connections, but because of the software and technology used it can deliver speeds of about 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “as high as 16Mb”.

Your speed depends, as always, on the quality of the cabling and the distance you are from the exchange, but if you live a town or built up location you can realistically expect speeds of to 16Mb or more. This still provides ample bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which superfast connectivity product is the best?

Among the UK’s quickest connectivity products is Virgin Media’s 152Mbps service. Virgin Media, which also offers 50Mbps broadband products as a bare minimum, is able to deliver such fast connections thanks to its super-fast fibre-optic broadband network.

BT’s Infinity package offers a maximum speed of 76Mbps and the previously mentioned services from Sky, EE and TalkTalk, which use BT’s fibre optic network and feature headline speeds according to BT.

 

 

Broadband products offering an up to 16Mbps (or thereabouts) connection are available from most providers. The arrival of these speeds has been facilitated by an upgrade of BT’s network with ADSL2+ technology, enabling the existing cabling to carry more data.

How do I get fibre optic broadband ?

Your first step is to decide which super-fast broadband services are available in your area . Check which types of connectivity are available.

 

Benefits of high bandwidth broadband connections

High speed broadband can let you make the most of all the music streaming on offer online. You will have the capacity to watch movies in a matter of minutes – allowing you watch what you like, when you like it, and getting rid of the days of long waiting times for astronomical downloads.

Fans of on-demand programmes will love their favourite shows on the Sky Now TV, along with rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without buffering.

Reduced ‘ping’ means better response times delivered by super fast connectivity means that when playing game online you a competitive advantage over the opposition and can enjoy a better more enjoyable experience.

Disadvantages of fibre broadband

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very close ) and based on things that are not within your control, like the quality of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the BT exchange . Regardless of whether high speed internet connectivity is on offer in your location, these limiting factors may not bring many improvements in speed for a much higher monthly cost .

Who is  fibre connectivity  for?

The massive growth in the range of people downloading music , video and watching catchup TV online means that there is no more a typical user of super fast internet .

If you are a heavy downloader or are one of the increasing number of consumers who prefer to catch up with TV programmes online, it makes sense to sign up for a super fast internet connectivity service – preferably fibre optic for the best experience.

Super fast internet connectivity is also ideal for fans of online console usage. This is because faster connectivity eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is referred to as ping,  which is often  caused by slower traditionalbroadband products . This can seriously ruin your online gaming experience .

If you only use the internet for checking your e-mail and for the occasional search, it’s more prudent to decide on a traditional ADSL service .

Gateside – Other Areas

Strone

Nefyn

Hanham

Fornham St. Martin

Hemlington

Kirkby Stephen

Piddington

Boxted Cross

Great Munden

Staxton