Who needs High Speed FTTC Connectivity ?

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

Thurlow 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 like 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 turned on all at once. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small company has the ability to do what they want online– all simultaneously– without any 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 surf the internet, stream 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 broadband products deliver speeds of as high as 300Mbps, through sophisticated fibre-optic broadband networks which include Virgin Media and BT’s Infinity fibre optic cables.

How does super-fast connectivity work ?

Unlike most of UK internet connections, which use telephone 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 composed 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 as high as 76Mb fibre 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 used BT’s Infinity service to launch rebranded high speed cable broadband services of their own.

However, fast internet 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 range of your broadband provider’s exchange you can still get fast internet by joining selected ADSL2+ internet services from the companies like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This style of connectivity uses the same wiring and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL internet connections, but thanks to the software and technology used it can deliver speeds of around 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “approximately 16Mb”.

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

Which super-fast connectivity product is the best?

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 with the help of its superfast fibre 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 line 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 start is to see which high speed internet services are available in your area . Check which products are available.

 

Benefits of fast broadband connections

Super fast internet connectivity enables you to make the most of all the entertainment services available on-line. You will have the chance to watch movies in a matter of minutes – allowing you view what you want , when you like it, and getting rid of the hanging around for astronomical downloads.

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

Reduced latency means move favourable response times delivered by fibre internet means that when playing game online you an one-upmanship over the opponents and can enjoy a better gaming experience.

Disadvantages of high speed connectivity

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

Who is  FTTC broadband  for?

The massive growth in the number of people listening to music, downloading video and watching TV online means that there is no longer a typical user of super-fast internet connectivity.

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 high speed connectivity deal – preferably fibre optic for the best service.

Super fast internet is also ideal for fans of online games . This is because faster connectivity eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is referred to as ping,  which is often  brought on by slower DSL internet services . 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 opt for a standard ADSL deal .

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