Who needs Super-fast FTTC Connectivity ?

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

Affcot 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 sitting in commuter traffic, something that all of us 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 signed on all at once. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or local business has the ability to do what they want online– all at the same time– without any annoying delays.

What is high speed broadband?

Super-fast broadband relates to broadband connections of approximately 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 broadband users.

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

How does high speed broadband operate?

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

BT also offers an as much as 76Mb fibre service called Infinity (you can get 300Mbps in some areas), and plans to make this available to millions more UK residence in in the near future .

 

 

The likes of TalkTalk, Sky and EE have used BT’s Infinity service to launch rebranded super-fast cable broadband services of their own.

However, fast internet is not exclusively 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 internet provider’s exchange you can still get fast broadband by subscribing to selected ADSL2+ internet services from the companies like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This kind of connectivity uses the same cabling and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL internet connections, but as a result of the software and technology used it can deliver speeds of up to 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 a town or built up area you can realistically expect speeds of approximately 16Mb or more. This still provides sufficient bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which high speed connectivity product is the best?

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 of its super-fast fibre-optic broadband network.

BT’s Infinity package delivers a maximum speed of 76Mbps and the aforementioned services from Sky, EE and TalkTalk, which use BT’s fibre optic 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 cabling to carry more data.

How do I get fibre connectivity?

Your start is to see which superfast broadband services are available in your area . Check which products are available.

 

Benefits of high bandwidth internet

High speed internet connectivity lets you utilise all the video on demand on offer on the world wide web. You’ll manage to download movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you watch what you like, 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 better response times delivered by super fast broadband means that when online gaming you gain a competitive advantage over the competition and can enjoy a better playing experience.

Disadvantages of fibre connectivity

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very near) and based on things that are not within your control, like the age of wiring and the distance you live from the BT exchange . Even when fibre internet is on offer in your location, these limiting factors may not bring many improvements in speed for a much higher annual cost .

Who is  fibre connectivity  for?

The massive growth in the range of people streaming music , streaming 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 sense to join a high speed internet deal – preferably fibre for the greatest service.

High speed internet connectivity is also ideal for fans of online console usage. Due to the fact faster connectivity eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is commonly as a resulted of slower ADSL internet products . This can seriously ruin your online gaming pleasure.

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

Affcot – Other Areas

Town Lane

Patchole

Bletchingley

Dersingham

Coverham

Colwall Stone

Ullinish

Marley

Saracens Head

Roughhill