Who needs Super-fast Fibre Internet ?

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

Goldicote Broadband Deals For December 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 we all would like 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 turned on all at once. 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 relates to broadband connections of up to 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 internet users.

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

How does superfast connectivity work ?

Unlike most UK internet 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 composed of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much quicker than along the copper cables used by traditional DSL connectivity .

BT also offers a to 76Mb fibre-optic service called 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 only 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 internet provider’s exchange you can still get fast internet by joining selected ADSL2+ broadband services from the providers like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This sort of connectivity uses the same wiring and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL broadband connections, but due to the software and technology used it can deliver speeds of around 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “right up to 16Mb”.

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

Which superfast connectivity product is the fastest?

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 as a result of its superfast fibre-optic connectivity network.

BT’s Infinity package delivers 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 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 super-fast connectivity?

Your first step is to decide which highspeed internet services are available at your exhaage. Check which products are available.

 

Benefits of high bandwidth broadband connections

Fast internet connectivity lets you utilise all the entertainment on offer on the world wide web. You’ll have the chance to watch movies in a within minutes – allowing you view what you like, when you like it, and getting rid of the days of long waiting times for enormous downloads.

Fans of on-demand TV will love their best shows on the BBC iPlayer , and even rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without interruption .

Reduced latency means improved response times delivered by high speed connectivity means that when playing game online you a competitive advantage over the opponents and can enjoy a better playing experience.

Disadvantages of FTTC internet

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very close ) and based on things that are not within your control, like the quality of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the cabinet . Although super-fast internet is available in your location, these limiting factors may yield little difference in speed for a much higher annual price.

Who is  FTTC broadband  for?

The massive growth in the amount of people downloading music , video and watching catchup TV online means that there is no longer a typical user of super-fast 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 super fast internet connectivity product – preferably fibre optic for the best experience.

Super-fast broadband is also ideal for fans of online console usage. This is because faster connectivity eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is referred to as ping,  which is often  caused by slower DSL internet connectivity services . This can seriously ruin your gaming pleasure.

If you only use the internet for checking your e-mail and for the occasional search, it’s more prudent to prefer a standard ADSL service .

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