Who needs Super-fast Broadband Fibre Internet ?

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

Covender 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 sitting in commuter traffic, something that all of us would love 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 all at once. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small company has the ability to do what they want online– all all at once– without any annoying delays.

What is super-fast broadband?

Super-fast broadband concerns broadband connections of around 300Mbps in the UK.

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

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

How does fibre internet operate?

Unlike many of UK internet connections, which use telephony 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 made of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much quicker than along the copper cables 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 residence in in the not too distant future.

 

 

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

However, fast broadband is not exclusively available 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 range of your broadband provider’s exchange you can still get fast internet by joining selected ADSL2+ broadband services from the likes of O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This form of connection uses the same cables 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 “around 16Mb”.

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

Which superfast connectivity product is the fastest?

Among the UK’s fastest internet 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 optic 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 superfast connectivity?

Your first step is to see which highspeed broadband services are available to you . Check which service are available.

 

Benefits of super-fast broadband

Fast internet connectivity lets you take advantage of all the entertainment available on-line. You will manage to download movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you view what you like, when you demand it , and getting rid of the hanging around for large downloads.

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

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

Disadvantages of fibre connectivity

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very near) and dependent on things that are not within your control, like the age of wiring and the distance you live from the green box. Even if high speed internet is available in your location, these limiting factors may yield little difference in speed for a much higher annual cost .

Who is  FTTC internet connectivity for?

The massive growth in the number of people listening to music, video and watching TV online means that there is no longer a typical user of super fast 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 sense to enrol for a super-fast connectivity service – preferably fibre for the best service.

High speed internet 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 referred to as ping,  which is often  triggered by slower DSL connectivity products . This can seriously ruin your online gaming pleasure.

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 deal .

Covender – Other Areas

Chartershall

Stamford Bridge

Grangetown

Somerley

Ludderburn

Carstairs Junction

Carlton

Mounton

Drayton

Abbotts Barton