Who needs Super-fast Fibre Connections?

Broadband has become increasingly more essential to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use every day that bank 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 on a daily basis.

Gildingwells 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 being stuck 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 signed on concurrently. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small company has the opportunity to do what they want online– all all at once– without any annoying delays.

What is fast broadband?

Super-fast broadband describes broadband connections of more than 300Mbps in the UK.

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

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

How does super-fast connectivity operate?

Unlike many of UK broadband 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 up of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much faster than along the copper cables used by traditional DSL broadband .

BT also offers an up to 76Mb fibre 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 near 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 only on offer 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 subscribing to selected ADSL2+ broadband services from the providers like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This type of connectivity uses the same cabling and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL internet connections, but due to the software and technology 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 dwell in a town or built up location you can realistically expect speeds of as much as 16Mb or more. This still provides ample bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which superfast internet product is the quickest ?

Among the UK’s quickest 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 of its superfast fibre 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.

 

 

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 fibre broadband ?

Your 1st step is to decide which high speed broadband services are available in your area . Check which types of connectivity are available.

 

Benefits of fast broadband connections

Fast internet empowers you to use all the entertainment services available on the internet. You will have the capacity to download movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you view what you like, when you like it, and banishing the hanging around for enormous downloads.

Fans of on-demand TV can enjoy their best shows on the Sky Now TV, and even 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 online gaming you gain an one-upmanship over the opposition and can enjoy a better gaming experience.

Disadvantages of super-fast broadband

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very close ) and based upon things that are out of your control , like the age of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the BT exchange . Wherever super fast internet connectivity is on offer in your area , these limiting factors may not bring many benefits in performance for a much higher monthly cost .

Who is super-fast connectivity  for?

The massive growth in the quantity of people streaming music , downloading video and watching TV online means that there is no more a typical user of high speed broadband .

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 internet connectivity deal – preferably fibre optic for the best experience.

Super fast broadband is also ideal for fans of online console usage. Due to the fact a faster connection eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is commonly triggered by slower DSL broadband products . 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 traditional ADSL connection.

Gildingwells – Other Areas

East Bower

Ashley Warren

Coalpit Field

East Stoke

Rockford

Kinnordy

Outwell

Sascott

Seafield

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