Who needs Super-fast Fibre Connectivity ?

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

Balimore Broadband Deals For October 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 being stuck in commuter traffic, something that all of us would love 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 concurrently. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or business has the capacity to do what they want online– all at the same time– without any annoying delays.

What is super-fast broadband?

Super-fast broadband describes broadband connections of right up to 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 internet users.

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

How does high speed internet operate?

Unlike the majority of UK internet connections, which use telephony lines, the UK’s fastest broadband 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 of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much faster than along the copper cables used by traditional ADSL broadband .

BT also offers an as high as 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 near future .

 

 

The likes of TalkTalk, Sky and EE have resold BT’s Infinity service to launch rebranded super fast cable broadband services 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 range of your broadband provider’s exchange you can still get fast internet by subscribing to selected ADSL2+ internet services from the likes of O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This kind of connection uses the same wiring and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL broadband connections, but because of the software and technology used it can deliver speeds of up to 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “around 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 location you can realistically expect speeds of as much as 16Mb or more. This still provides plenty of bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which high speed internet product is the quickest ?

Among the UK’s quickest 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 because of its superfast fibre-optic broadband network.

BT’s Infinity package offers a maximum speed of 76Mbps and the previously mentioned services from Sky, EE and TalkTalk, which use BT’s fibre network and feature headline speeds in line with 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 fibre broadband ?

Your start is to see which fast internet services are available at your exhaage. Check which service are available.

 

Benefits of fast broadband connections

High speed internet enables you to make the most of all the music streaming on offer on the web. You will be able to watch movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you view what you want , when you want it , and getting rid of the days of long waiting times for very large downloads.

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

Reduced ‘ping’ means better response times delivered by super fast connectivity means that online gamers gain a competitive advantage over the opponents and can enjoy a better playing experience.

Disadvantages of high speed broadband

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 exchange . Wherever super-fast broadband is available in your area , these limiting factors may yield little difference in performance for a much higher price .

Who is super-fast connectivity  for?

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

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 service – preferably fibre optic for the best experience.

Fibre internet connectivity is also ideal for fans of online games . This is because faster connectivity eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is often  triggered by slower traditional internet connectivity 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 select a standard ADSL service .

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