Who needs Super-fast Fibre Connectivity ?

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

Catch Broadband Deals For December 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 sitting in commuter traffic, something that we all would like to avoid.

 

 

Quite simply, traditional broadband connections often struggle to come to grips 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 company manages to do what they want online– all concurrently– without any annoying delays.

What is fast broadband?

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

Super-fast broadband connections enable users to go online , download music & video and stream television at speeds that are massively above most broadband users.

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

How does super-fast broadband work ?

Unlike many 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 comprised of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much quicker than along the copper pipes used by standard ADSL internet .

BT also offers an as much as 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 near future .

 

 

The likes of TalkTalk, Sky and EE have piggybacked on BT’s Infinity service to launch rebranded super fast cable broadband products of their own.

However, fast broadband is not only on offer to people in a fibre-optic broadband locations. 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 internet by registering selected ADSL2+ internet packages from the companies like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

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

Which superfast connectivity product is the fastest?

Among the UK’s fastest 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 thanks to its superfast fibre-optic broadband 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 accordance 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 superfast broadband ?

Your 1st step is to see which fast broadband services are available in your area . Check which service are available.

 

Benefits of high bandwidth internet

Fast internet lets you take advantage of all the entertainment available on the world wide web. You’ll have the opportunity to watch movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you consume what you like, when you want it , and banishing the hanging around for large downloads.

Fans of on-demand show will love their best shows on the Sky Now TV, and also rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without buffering.

Reduced ‘ping’ means better response times delivered by super-fast broadband means that online gamers gain an one-upmanship over the opponents and can enjoy a better gaming experience.

Disadvantages of fibre internet

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very near) and rely on things that are out of your control , like the quality of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the exchange . Whether or not fibre internet connectivity is on offer in your area , these limiting factors may yield little difference in performance for a much higher monthly price .

Who is  high speed broadband  for?

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

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 product – preferably fibre optic for the best service .

High speed internet is also ideal for fans of online gaming . This is because faster connectivity gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is commonly triggered by slower ADSL 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 choose a traditional ADSL service .

Catch – Other Areas

Clare

Greenhills

Aylesham

Leire

Burry Port

Churchtown

Coldwaltham

Linstock

Eastwick

Thorpe