Who needs Super-fast Broadband Internet ?

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

Scronkey Broadband Deals For December 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 come to grips with the simultaneous demands of downloading large files, streaming videos or music, with multiple devices and appliances logged on at the same time. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or business has the capacity to do what they want online– all concurrently– with no annoying delays.

What is quick broadband?

Super-fast broadband concerns broadband connections of more than 300Mbps in the UK.

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

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

How does super-fast connectivity operate?

Unlike most UK internet connections, which use telephony lines, the UK’s quickest broadband 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 connectivity .

BT also offers an as much as 76Mb fibre-optic service called BT 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 super fast cable broadband products of their own.

However, fast broadband is not only 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 sort of connection uses the same wiring and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL phone-line connections, but thanks to the software and technology used it can deliver speeds of around 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “to 16Mb”.

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

Which super-fast connectivity product is the best?

Among the UK’s quickest 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 delivers 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.

 

 

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 copper to carry more data.

How do I get fibre broadband ?

Your first step is to decide which highspeed broadband services are available at your exhaage. Check which types of connectivity are available.

 

Benefits of high speed broadband connectivity

High speed broadband enables you to take advantage of all the video on demand available on the web. You’ll have the opportunity to watch movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you consume what you like, when you like it, and getting rid of the days of long waiting times for astronomical downloads.

Fans of on-demand show will love their favourite shows on the Sky Now TV, and also rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without interruption .

Reduced latency means better response times delivered by fibre broadband means that when playing game online you a competitive advantage over the opposition and can enjoy a better playing experience.

Disadvantages of high speed internet

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very close ) and depend on things that are not within your control, like the quality of wiring and the distance you live from the green box. Whether or not high speed connectivity is on offer in your area , these limiting factors may not bring many improvements in speed for a much higher annual cost .

Who is  FTTC internet  for?

The massive growth in the range of people downloading music , video and watching on demand TV online means that there is no longer a typical user of high speed internet .

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 good sense to subscribe to a super fast internet service – preferably fibre optic for the greatest service.

High speed internet is also ideal for fans of online games . This is because a faster connection eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is known as ping,  which is often  triggered by slower DSL internet services . 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 favour a standard ADSL service .

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