Who needs High Speed Fibre Connections?

Broadband has become much more vital to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use on a daily basis that utilise broadband connectivity seems to increase. The range of tablets, smartphones, laptops, desktops, games consoles and TV’s that everyone has in their homes, seems to increase everyday.

Mineshope Broadband Deals For October 2025

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 sitting in commuter traffic, something that we all would love to avoid.

 

 

Quite simply, traditional broadband connections often struggle to cope with the simultaneous demands of downloading large files, streaming videos or music, with multiple devices and appliances logged on simultaneously. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small business has the ability to do what they want online– all all at once– without any annoying delays.

What is super-fast broadband?

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

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

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

How does high speed broadband operate?

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

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

 

 

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

However, fast broadband is not only on offer to people in a fibre broadband area . Fast broadband is not exclusively on offer to people in a fibre-optic broadband area. If you live within a certain distant of your broadband provider’s exchange you can still get fast broadband by signing up for selected ADSL2+ broadband services from the providers like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This form of connection uses the same cabling and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL phone-line connections, but as a result of the software and technology being used it can deliver speeds of approximately 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “to 16Mb”.

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

Which high speed connectivity product is the quickest ?

Among the UK’s fastest internet 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 because 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 network and feature headline speeds in line with BT.

 

 

Alternatively, 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 fast connectivity?

Your start is to decide which highspeed broadband services are available to you . Check which products are available.

 

Benefits of high speed internet

Super-fast broadband lets you take advantage of all the music streaming on offer online. You’ll manage to watch movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you consume what you want , when you like it, and banishing the hanging around for large downloads.

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

Reduced ‘ping’ means better response times delivered by high speed internet means that when online gaming you gain a competitive advantage over the competition and can enjoy a better playing experience.

Disadvantages of FTTC connectivity

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very close ) and depend on things that are out of your control , like the age of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the BT exchange . Whether or not super fast internet is on offer in your location, these limiting factors may yield little difference in performance for a much higher price .

Who is super-fast internet connectivity for?

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

However, 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 subscribe to a super fast internet connectivity deal – preferably fibre optic for the best service.

Fibre connectivity is also ideal for fans of online gaming . This is because a faster connection gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is referred to as ping,  which is often  brought on by slower traditional connectivity services . This can seriously ruin your gaming experience .

If you only use the internet for checking your e-mail and for the occasional search, it’s more prudent to go with a standard ADSL deal .

Mineshope – Other Areas

Portmead

Tritlington

Broad Ings

Cill Amhlaidh

Llandeilo’r Fan

Stoney Stoke

Three Elms

Hadleigh Heath

Kelvedon

Atcham