Who needs High Speed Fibre Internet ?

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

Clungunford Broadband Deals For March 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 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 signed on all at once. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or company manages to do what they want online– all at the same time– with no annoying delays.

What is super-fast broadband?

Super-fast broadband concerns broadband connections of right up to 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 internet users.

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

How does super-fast connectivity operate?

Unlike many UK internet connections, which use telephony lines, the UK’s fastest 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 quicker than along the copper cables used by traditional DSL internet connectivity.

BT also offers a more than 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 not too distant future.

 

 

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

However, fast internet is not exclusively available to people in a fibre broadband locations. Fast broadband is not exclusively on offer to people in a fibre-optic broadband area. If you live within a certain range of your internet provider’s exchange you can still get fast internet by signing up for selected ADSL2+ internet packages from the companies like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This type of connection uses the same wiring and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL broadband connections, but because of the software and technology used it can deliver speeds of approximately 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “almost 16Mb”.

Your speed depends, as always, on the quality of the wiring and the distance you are from the exchange, but if you live in a city 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 quickest ?

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 with the help of its super-fast fibre-optic connectivity network.

BT’s Infinity package offers 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 fibre optic broadband ?

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

 

Advantages of high bandwidth internet

High speed broadband can let you enjoy all the video on demand on offer on the web. You’ll have the opportunity to download movies in a matter of minutes – allowing you consume what you like, when you want 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 , as well as rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without buffering.

Reduced ‘ping’ means improved response times delivered by super fast internet means that when playing game online you an one-upmanship over the competition and can enjoy a better gaming experience.

Disadvantages of fibre connectivity

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very close ) and dependent on things that are not within your control, like the quality of wiring and the distance you live from the BT exchange . Even when super-fast internet connectivity is available in your location, these limiting factors may yield little difference in speed for a much higher cost .

Who is  FTTC internet connectivity for?

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

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 broadband product – preferably fibre optic for the best experience.

Super-fast connectivity is also ideal for fans of online console usage. This is because faster connectivity gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is often  triggered by slower DSL 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 prefer a traditional ADSL deal .

Clungunford – Other Areas

Brays Grove

Baile an Truiseil

Wadwick

Creswell

Horsebridge

Tilbrook

Damhead

Lower Middleton Cheney

Roskear Croft

Blackborough