Who needs Superfast FTTC ?

Broadband has become much more essential to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use every day that rely upon broadband connectivity seems to increase. The amount of tablets, smartphones, laptops, desktops, games consoles and TV’s that everyone has in their homes, seems to increase each day.

Balance Hill 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 we all would like 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 simultaneously. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or local business has the chance to do what they want online– all all at once– with no annoying delays.

What is super-fast broadband?

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

Super-fast broadband connections enable users to go online , stream 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), super-fast internet products deliver speeds of approximately 300Mbps, through sophisticated fibre-optic cabled networks which includes Virgin Media and BT’s Infinity fibre optic cables.

How does superfast connectivity work ?

Unlike many of UK internet connections, which use telephone lines, the UK’s quickest 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 composed of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much faster than along the copper cables used by standard ADSL internet connectivity.

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

 

 

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

However, fast internet is not exclusively available to people in a fibre broadband locations. 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 broadband by joining selected ADSL2+ broadband packages from the providers like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This style of connectivity uses the same cabling and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL phone-line connections, but due to the software and technology being used it can deliver speeds of almost 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “as much as 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 town or built up area you can realistically expect speeds of more than 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 fastest?

Among the UK’s fastest 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-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.

 

 

Alternatively, 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 fast broadband ?

Your initial step is to decide which superfast broadband services are available to you . Check which service are available.

 

Benefits of high bandwidth broadband

Super-fast internet enables you to make the most of all the music streaming available online. You will manage to download movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you watch what you like, when you want it , and getting rid of the days of long waiting times for big downloads.

Fans of on-demand TV can enjoy their favourite shows on the BBC iPlayer , as well as rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without interruption .

Reduced latency means move favourable response times delivered by super-fast connectivity means that when online gaming you gain an one-upmanship over the opponents and can enjoy a better gaming experience.

Disadvantages of fibre connectivity

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very near) and based on things that are out of your control , like the quality of wiring and the distance you live from the exchange . Whether or not high speed broadband is available in your area , these limiting factors may not bring many improvements in performance for a much higher price .

Who is super-fast connectivity  for?

The massive growth in the number of people listening to music, video and watching catchup TV online means that there is no more a typical user of super fast 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 enrol for a high speed broadband service – preferably fibre for the greatest service.

High speed internet connectivity is also ideal for fans of online console usage. This is because faster connectivity eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is often  as a resulted of slower traditional connectivity products. 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 choose a traditional ADSL service .

Balance Hill – Other Areas

Upper Landywood

Ingmanthorpe

Leconfield

Tarrant Keyneston

Treharris

Toys Hill

Tanygrisiau

Stutton

Gallowfields Trading Estate

Llangaffo