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 each day that depend on broadband connectivity seems to increase. The number of tablets, smartphones, laptops, desktops, games consoles and TV’s that everyone has in their homes, seems to increase everyday.

Balmalloch 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 all of us wish 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 signed on all at once. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small company is able to do what they want online– all simultaneously– without any annoying delays.

What is high speed broadband?

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

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

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

How does fibre internet operate?

Unlike the majority of UK broadband connections, which use telephony 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 made of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much faster than along the copper pipes used by standard DSL broadband .

BT also offers an as much 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 used BT’s Infinity service to launch rebranded super-fast cable broadband products of their own.

However, fast broadband is not only available 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 distant of your internet provider’s exchange you can still get fast broadband by joining selected ADSL2+ internet packages from the likes of O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This form of connection uses the same wiring and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL phone-line 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 “to 16Mb”.

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

Which high speed connectivity product is the quickest ?

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 thanks to 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 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 super-fast connectivity?

Your 1st step is to decide which fast internet services are available at your exhaage. Check which products are available.

 

Advantages of super fast broadband

Super-fast internet enables you to enjoy all the services on offer on the net. You’ll have the capacity to download movies in a matter of minutes – allowing you view what you like, when you like it, and banishing the hanging around for large downloads.

Fans of on-demand show will love their best shows on the BBC iPlayer , and even rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without buffering.

Reduced ‘ping’ means move favourable response times delivered by super fast internet means that when playing game online you an one-upmanship over the opposition and can enjoy a better more enjoyable experience.

Disadvantages of FTTC connectivity

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very near) and rely on things that are out of your control , like the age of wiring and the distance you live from the green box. Although fibre broadband is on offer in your location, these limiting factors may not bring many benefits in performance for a much higher monthly cost .

Who is  fibre internet  for?

The massive growth in the range of people streaming music , streaming video and watching on demand TV online means that there is no longer a typical user of high speed 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 internet connectivity product – preferably fibre optic for the best experience.

Super-fast internet is also ideal for fans of online console usage. Due to the fact a faster connection eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is referred to as ping,  which is commonly caused by slower DSL internet connectivity services . This can seriously ruin your online gaming experience .

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

Balmalloch – Other Areas

Southcote

The Parks

Bury Hollow

Higher Poynton

Greenstead Green

Rake

Deighton

Honington

Middle Crackington

Artigarvan