Who needs High Speed Fibre Internet ?

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

Clerkhill Broadband Deals For April 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 being stuck in commuter traffic, something that most of us need to avoid.

 

 

Quite simply, traditional broadband connections often struggle to deal with the simultaneous demands of downloading large files, streaming videos or music, with multiple devices and appliances logged on concurrently. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small company manages to do what they want online– all simultaneously– without any annoying delays.

What is fast broadband?

Super-fast broadband refers to broadband connections of about 300Mbps in the UK.

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

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

How does super-fast internet operate?

Unlike many UK internet connections, which use telephone 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 up of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much quicker than along the copper cables used by standard xDSL internet .

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 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 products of their own.

However, fast internet is not exclusively 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 services from the companies like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This style of connectivity uses the same cabling and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL phone-line connections, but due to the software and technology being used it can deliver speeds of as high as 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “about 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 location you can realistically expect speeds of to 16Mb or more. This still provides ample bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which super-fast internet product is the best?

Among the UK’s quickest 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 because its superfast fibre-optic 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 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 super-fast broadband ?

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

 

Advantages of fast broadband connections

Super-fast internet enables you to make the most of all the services on offer on-line. You will be able to download movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you watch what you like, when you like it, and banishing the days of long waiting times for huge downloads.

Fans of on-demand TV can enjoy their favourite shows on the BBC iPlayer , including rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without buffering.

Reduced latency means better response times delivered by super fast internet means that when online gaming you gain a competitive advantage over the opposition and can enjoy a better more enjoyable experience.

Disadvantages of super-fast internet connectivity

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very near) and based on things that are out of your control , like the age of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the cabinet . Even though high speed internet is available in your area , these limiting factors may yield little difference in speed for a much higher cost .

Who is  fibre connectivity  for?

The massive growth in the quantity of people streaming music , streaming video and watching catchup TV online means that there is no longer a typical user of super-fast broadband .

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 subscribe to a super-fast broadband product – preferably fibre for the greatest service.

Fibre internet is also ideal for fans of online games . Due to the fact faster connectivity gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is referred to as ping,  which is commonly brought on by slower traditional 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 standard ADSL service .

Clerkhill – Other Areas

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