Who needs Superfast Broadband FTTC Internet?

Broadband has become much more necessary to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use each day 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.

Flax Bourton Broadband Deals For October 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 most of us wish to avoid.

 

 

Quite simply, traditional broadband connections often struggle to handle the simultaneous demands of downloading large files, streaming videos or music, with multiple devices and appliances signed on at the same time. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small business has the capacity to do what they want online– all at the same time– without any annoying delays.

What is fast broadband?

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

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

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

How does high speed internet operate?

Unlike most of UK broadband connections, which use telephone lines, the UK’s quickest broadband 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 comprised of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much faster than along the copper pipes used by standard ADSL internet connectivity.

BT also offers an as high as 76Mb fibre service called BT Infinity (you can get 300Mbps in some areas), and plans to make this available to millions more UK residence in years to come.

 

 

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 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 range of your broadband provider’s exchange you can still get fast internet by getting selected ADSL2+ broadband services from the companies like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

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

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

Which superfast broadband product is the fastest?

Among the UK’s quickest 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 because its superfast fibre connectivity network.

BT’s Infinity package delivers 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.

 

 

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 copper to carry more data.

How do I get superfast broadband ?

Your initial step is to decide which superfast internet services are available to you . Check which service are available.

 

Advantages of fast broadband connections

Super fast internet lets you take advantage of all the music streaming on offer on the world wide web. You’ll have the ability to download movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you view what you like, when you like it, and getting rid of the hanging around for large downloads.

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

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

Disadvantages of super-fast internet

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very close ) 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 super fast broadband is available in your area , these limiting factors may not bring many improvements in performance for a much higher monthly price .

Who is  high speed internet connectivity for?

The massive growth in the amount of people streaming music , streaming video and watching on demand 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 good sense to join a super-fast internet deal – preferably fibre for the best service.

Super fast broadband is also ideal for fans of online gaming . Due to the fact a faster connection eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is often  triggered by slower DSL broadband 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 go with a traditional ADSL deal .

Flax Bourton – Other Areas

Inverlochy

Fallings Heath

Chadwell St Mary

New Smithy

Norton Hill

Newmarket

Waterbeach

Messingham

Cundall

Fernhurst