Who needs Super-fast Broadband Fibre Connectivity ?

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

Calvert 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 all of us wish 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 business has the ability to do what they want online– all concurrently– with no annoying delays.

What is high speed broadband?

Super-fast broadband describes broadband connections of around 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 greater than most broadband users.

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

How does fibre broadband work ?

Unlike most UK internet connections, which use telephone lines, the UK’s quickest broadband 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 made of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much faster than along the copper pipes used by traditional DSL internet .

BT also offers a more than 76Mb fibre-optic service called BT 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 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 internet by registering selected ADSL2+ broadband packages from the companies like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This sort of connection uses the same cables and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL broadband connections, but because of the software and technology used it can deliver speeds of about 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “right up to 16Mb”.

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

Which super-fast connectivity product is the quickest ?

Among the UK’s quickest 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 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 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 fast connectivity?

Your first step is to see which super-fast internet services are available at your exhaage. Check which types of connectivity are available.

 

Advantages of high bandwidth broadband connections

Fast internet lets you make the most of all the entertainment on offer on-line. You’ll have the ability to download movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you view what you want , when you demand it , and banishing the hanging around 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 buffering.

Reduced latency means better response times delivered by fibre broadband means that when playing game online you an one-upmanship over the opposition and can enjoy a better playing experience.

Disadvantages of super-fast internet connectivity

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very close ) and based upon things that are out of your control , like the age of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the exchange . Despite the fact that high speed broadband is on offer in your location, these limiting factors may not bring many improvements in speed for a much higher annual cost .

Who is  FTTC internet  for?

The massive growth in the range of people listening to music, video and watching TV online means that there is no more a typical user of fibre 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 fibre connectivity deal – preferably fibre optic for the best service .

Super-fast internet is also ideal for fans of online console usage. This is because faster connectivity eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is referred to as ping,  which is commonly brought on by slower traditional internet products . 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 go with a traditional ADSL service .

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