Who needs Super-fast Fibre Connections?

Broadband has become more and more vital to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use per day that depend on 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 everyday.

Great Stoke Broadband Deals For April 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 most of us would love 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 logged on concurrently. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or company has the capacity to do what they want online– all all at once– with no annoying delays.

What is fast broadband?

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

Super-fast broadband connections enable users to connect to the internet , 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), superfast broadband products deliver speeds of around 300Mbps, through sophisticated fibre-optic cabled networks which include Virgin Media and BT’s Infinity fibre optic cables.

How does super-fast connectivity work ?

Unlike many UK internet connections, which use telephony 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 made of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much quicker than along the copper pipes used by standard xDSL broadband .

BT also offers a more than 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 in the future .

 

 

The likes of TalkTalk, Sky and EE have resold BT’s Infinity service to launch rebranded high speed 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 distant of your internet provider’s exchange you can still get fast internet by subscribing to selected ADSL2+ internet packages from the providers like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

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

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

Which high speed connectivity product is the best?

Among the UK’s fastest 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-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 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 cabling to carry more data.

How do I get fibre broadband ?

Your start is to decide which fast broadband services are available in your area . Check which service are available.

 

Advantages of super-fast broadband

Super-fast broadband enables you to enjoy all the video on demand available on-line. You’ll manage to watch movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you view what you want , when you demand it , and getting rid of the days of long waiting times for big downloads.

Fans of on-demand TV can enjoy their favourite shows on the BBC iPlayer , including rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without interruption .

Reduced ‘ping’ means better response times delivered by high speed internet means that when online gaming you gain an one-upmanship over the competition and can enjoy a better more enjoyable experience.

Disadvantages of fibre internet connectivity

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very near) and dependent on things that are out of your control , like the quality of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the BT exchange . Despite the fact that high speed internet is available in your location, these limiting factors may not bring many benefits in performance for a much higher price .

Who is  high speed internet connectivity for?

The massive growth in the amount of people listening to music, video and watching catchup TV online means that there is no more a typical user of high speed 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 sign up for a super-fast internet service – preferably fibre for the greatest service.

Super fast broadband is also ideal for fans of online gaming . Due to the fact faster connectivity eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is known as ping,  which is commonly triggered by slower DSL internet 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 opt for a standard ADSL connection.

Great Stoke – Other Areas

Stake Hill

Oxcroft

Crewton

Rassau

Hilton Bank

Prees Green

Penbeagle

Inverlussa

Hawstead

Monkwood Green