Who needs Quick FTTC ?

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

Barr 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 most 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 logged on simultaneously. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or local business manages to do what they want online– all all at once– with no annoying delays.

What is high speed broadband?

Super-fast broadband refers to broadband connections of more than 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 greater than most broadband users.

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

How does super-fast broadband work ?

Unlike the majority of UK broadband connections, which use telephone lines, the UK’s quickest 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 comprised of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much faster than along the copper pipes used by standard ADSL internet .

BT also offers a right up to 76Mb fibre service called BT Infinity (you can get 300Mbps in some areas), and plans to make this available to millions more UK homes in in the 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 distant of your broadband provider’s exchange you can still get fast internet by registering selected ADSL2+ internet services from the providers like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This sort of connection uses the same cables and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL phone-line connections, but because of 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 copper 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 about 16Mb or more. This still provides more than enough bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which high speed connectivity product is the best?

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 because of its superfast fibre broadband network.

BT’s Infinity package delivers 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.

 

 

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 super-fast broadband ?

Your initial step is to see which fast broadband services are available to you . Check which service are available.

 

Advantages of high speed internet

Super fast internet connectivity can let you take advantage of all the entertainment on offer on-line. You’ll have the chance to watch movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you view what you like, when you like it, and getting rid of the hanging around for huge downloads.

Fans of on-demand show can enjoy their best shows on the BBC iPlayer , in addition to rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without buffering.

Reduced latency means improved response times delivered by super fast connectivity means that online gamers gain an one-upmanship over the competition and can enjoy a better gaming experience.

Disadvantages of FTTC internet connectivity

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 cabinet . Regardless of whether high speed internet is available in your area , these limiting factors may not bring many benefits in speed for a much higher annual price.

Who is super-fast connectivity  for?

The massive growth in the amount of people streaming music , streaming video and watching catchup TV online means that there is no longer a typical user of fibre internet .

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 super-fast internet service – preferably fibre for the best service.

Super fast connectivity is also ideal for fans of online console usage. This is because a faster connection gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is commonly triggered by slower traditional internet connectivity products. This can seriously ruin your gaming pleasure.

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

Barr – Other Areas

Mambeg

Deerness

Monmouth

Padmore

Hinton

Pipers Hill

Gracehill

Norby

Kilnwick

Rackham