Who needs Super-fast Broadband Connectivity ?

Broadband has become much more vital to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use on a daily basis that bank on 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 on a daily basis.

Discove Broadband Deals For May 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 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 has the capacity to do what they want online– all simultaneously– without any annoying delays.

What is fast broadband?

Super-fast broadband concerns broadband connections of approximately 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 above most broadband users.

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

How does super-fast internet work ?

Unlike the majority of UK broadband connections, which use telephone lines, the UK’s fastest 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 traditional ADSL broadband .

BT also offers a right up to 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 future .

 

 

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

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

ADSL2+

This style of connection uses the same wiring and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL phone-line connections, but thanks to the software and technology used it can deliver speeds of approximately 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “around 16Mb”.

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

Which high speed 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 thanks to 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 optic network and feature headline speeds according to 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 connectivity?

Your start is to decide which highspeed internet services are available to you . Check which products are available.

 

Advantages of high bandwidth broadband connections

Fast internet can let you enjoy all the services available on the net. You’ll be able to watch movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you consume what you want , when you want it , and getting rid of the days of long waiting times for huge downloads.

Fans of on-demand show will love their favourite shows on the Sky Now TV, in addition to rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without interruption .

Reduced latency means move favourable response times delivered by fibre internet means that when playing game online you an one-upmanship over the competition and can enjoy a better gaming experience.

Disadvantages of fibre broadband

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 green box. Even when fibre internet connectivity is on offer in your location, these limiting factors may not bring many improvements in speed for a much higher monthly cost .

Who is super-fast connectivity  for?

The massive growth in the range of people downloading music , streaming video and watching catchup TV online means that there is no more a typical user of super fast 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 super fast internet connectivity service – preferably fibre optic for the best service .

High speed broadband is also ideal for fans of online games . This is because a faster connection gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is known as ping,  which is often  as a resulted of slower traditionalbroadband 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 decide on a standard ADSL service .

Discove – Other Areas

Black Bank

Whitestone

Ashley Moor

Walkford

Upper Lochton

South Knighton

Moulton

Totland

Thornhaugh

Standlake