Who needs Superfast FTTC Internet?

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

Painleyhill 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 sitting in commuter traffic, something that all of us need 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 turned on at the same time. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small company has the capacity to do what they want online– all concurrently– with no annoying delays.

What is fast broadband?

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

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

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

How does super-fast broadband operate?

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 ADSL connectivity .

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

 

 

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

However, fast broadband is not only 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 range of your broadband provider’s exchange you can still get fast internet by subscribing to selected ADSL2+ internet packages from the likes of O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This type of connectivity uses the same cables 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 almost 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 dwell in a city or built up location you can realistically expect speeds of about 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 quickest ?

Among the UK’s quickest broadband 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 superfast fibre-optic connectivity network.

BT’s Infinity package offers a maximum speed of 76Mbps and the aforementioned services from Sky, EE and TalkTalk, which use BT’s fibre 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 superfast connectivity?

Your initial step is to decide which high speed internet services are available in your area . Check which types of connectivity are available.

 

Advantages of high speed broadband connections

Super-fast internet can let you enjoy all the entertainment services on offer on-line. You will manage to download movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you consume what you want , when you demand it , and getting rid of the hanging around for large downloads.

Fans of on-demand programmes can enjoy their best shows on the BBC iPlayer , besides rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without buffering.

Reduced ‘ping’ means better response times delivered by high speed connectivity means that when playing game online you an one-upmanship over the opposition and can enjoy a better playing experience.

Disadvantages of super-fast internet

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very near) and depend on things that are not within your control, like the age of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the green box. Regardless of whether fibre connectivity is available in your area , these limiting factors may not bring many benefits in speed for a much higher price .

Who is super-fast broadband  for?

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

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 fibre internet product – preferably fibre optic for the best service .

Super fast internet 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 called ping,  which is commonly brought on by slower DSL internet products . This can seriously ruin your gaming pleasure.

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

Painleyhill – Other Areas

Tynemouth

Burroughs Grove

London

Siadar

Blackford

Repps

West Drayton

Springthorpe

Hafodiwan

Ingham Corner