Who needs Superfast Broadband FTTC Connectivity ?

Broadband has become increasingly more necessary to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use per day that rely upon 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 every day.

Farnborough 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 we all would love to avoid.

 

 

Quite simply, traditional broadband connections often struggle to handle 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 business has the capacity to do what they want online– all concurrently– without any annoying delays.

What is super-fast broadband?

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

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

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

How does high speed internet operate?

Unlike many of 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 made up of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much quicker than along the copper pipes used by standard xDSL broadband .

BT also offers a to 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 in the not too distant future.

 

 

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 internet is not exclusively on offer to people in a fibre-optic 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 broadband by subscribing to selected ADSL2+ broadband packages from the likes of O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This style of connection uses the same cabling and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL broadband connections, but as a result of the software and technology being used it can deliver speeds of up to 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “up 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 city or built up area you can realistically expect speeds of about 16Mb or more. This still provides sufficient bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which superfast internet product is the quickest ?

Among the UK’s quickest connectivity 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 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 according to 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 connectivity?

Your initial step is to decide which super-fast internet services are available to you . Check which products are available.

 

Benefits of super-fast broadband connectivity

High speed internet enables you to make the most of all the entertainment services on offer online. You’ll have the chance to download movies in a within minutes – allowing you consume what you like, when you want it , and banishing the days of long waiting times for large downloads.

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

Reduced ‘ping’ means move favourable response times delivered by fibre broadband means that online gamers gain an one-upmanship over the opposition and can enjoy a better gaming experience.

Disadvantages of fibre internet

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very close ) and dependent 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 internet is on offer in your location, these limiting factors may yield little difference in speed for a much higher cost .

Who is  fibre internet  for?

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

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 super-fast broadband deal – preferably fibre optic for the best experience.

High speed connectivity is also ideal for fans of online gaming . This is because faster connectivity eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is often  brought on by slower ADSL broadband 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 pick a standard ADSL deal .

Farnborough – Other Areas

Kerrys Gate

Steam Mills

Westfield

Iet-y-bwlch

Liddington

Harris Mill

Piercebridge

North Broomage

Inveresk

Wern