Who needs Quick FTTC ?

Broadband has become increasingly more essential to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use on a daily basis 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 everyday.

Bycross Broadband Deals For July 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 we all 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 logged on simultaneously. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small company has the opportunity to do what they want online– all all at once– without any annoying delays.

What is high speed broadband?

Super-fast broadband relates to broadband connections of right up to 300Mbps in the UK.

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

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

How does fibre connectivity work ?

Unlike most of UK internet 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 composed of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much faster than along the copper pipes used by traditional xDSL connectivity .

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

 

 

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

However, fast internet is not only available to people in a fibre-optic 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 broadband provider’s exchange you can still get fast broadband by registering selected ADSL2+ broadband packages from the companies like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This type of connection uses the same cables and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL internet connections, but thanks to the software and technology being used it can deliver speeds of about 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “approximately 16Mb”.

Your speed depends, as always, on the quality of the cabling and the distance you are from the exchange, but if you dwell in a town or built up location you can realistically expect speeds of as much as 16Mb or more. This still provides ample bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which superfast broadband product is the best?

Among the UK’s fastest 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 due to its superfast fibre connectivity network.

BT’s Infinity package offers 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 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 high speed broadband ?

Your initial step is to decide which highspeed internet services are available to you . Check which service are available.

 

Benefits of super-fast internet

Super-fast broadband can let you enjoy all the music streaming available on the web. You will be able to download movies in a matter of minutes – allowing you consume what you like, when you like it, and getting rid of the hanging around for very large downloads.

Fans of on-demand show can enjoy their favourite 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 opposition and can enjoy a better gaming experience.

Disadvantages of high speed internet connectivity

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very close ) and based upon things that are not within your control, like the quality of wiring and the distance you live from the BT exchange . Even though fibre internet is available in your location, these limiting factors may not bring many benefits in performance for a much higher annual price.

Who is super-fast broadband  for?

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

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 sign up for a fibre broadband service – preferably fibre for the greatest service.

High speed internet 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 ADSL 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 favour a standard ADSL service .

Bycross – Other Areas

Bilston

Park End

Honeycombe Leaze

Crosscrake

Moulin

Downswood

Llangammarch Wells

Letham Grange

Sunnybank

Dervock