Who needs Superfast Broadband FTTC Internet?

Broadband has become increasingly more essential to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use per day that count on broadband connectivity seems to increase. The number of tablets, smartphones, laptops, desktops, games consoles and TV’s that everyone has in their homes, seems to increase daily.

Waterslack 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 being stuck in commuter traffic, something that most of us would love to avoid.

 

 

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

What is high speed broadband?

Super-fast broadband concerns broadband connections of as high as 300Mbps in the UK.

Super-fast broadband connections enable users to connect to the internet , download 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), high speed broadband products deliver speeds of approximately 300Mbps, through sophisticated fibre-optic cabled networks including Virgin Media and BT’s Infinity fibre optic cables.

How does high speed connectivity work ?

Unlike many of UK internet connections, which use telephony lines, the UK’s fastest internet 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 composed of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much faster than along the copper pipes used by traditional DSL internet connectivity.

BT also offers an as high 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 residence in years to come.

 

 

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

However, fast broadband is not exclusively available 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 internet by getting selected ADSL2+ internet packages from the likes of O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This type of connectivity 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 approximately 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “right up to 16Mb”.

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

Which high speed connectivity product is the fastest?

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 due to its super-fast fibre-optic connectivity 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 in accordance with 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 copper to carry more data.

How do I get fibre optic broadband ?

Your start is to decide which fast internet services are available to you . Check which products are available.

 

Advantages of super fast broadband

High speed internet lets you enjoy all the services on offer on the world wide web. You’ll have the opportunity to download movies in a within 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 TV will love their favourite shows on the Sky Now TV, along with rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without interruption .

Reduced latency means improved response times delivered by super-fast internet means that when online gaming you gain a competitive advantage over the opponents and can enjoy a better more enjoyable experience.

Disadvantages of super-fast broadband

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very close ) and based on things that are out of your control , like the quality of wiring and the distance you live from the exchange . Even if super-fast internet connectivity is on offer in your area , these limiting factors may yield little difference in speed for a much higher cost .

Who is  high speed connectivity  for?

The massive growth in the amount of people streaming music , video and watching TV online means that there is no more a typical user of high speed 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 good sense to join a high speed broadband product – preferably fibre optic for the very best service.

Fibre broadband is also ideal for fans of online games . This is because faster connectivity gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is known as ping,  which is often  triggered by slower ADSL 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 decide on a traditional ADSL service .

Waterslack – Other Areas

Town End

Tiverton Business Park

Treveighan

Rhydycroesau

Burghfield Hill

Monimail

Pinfoldpond

Shap

East Dundry

Birchetts Green