Who needs Superfast Connectivity ?

Broadband has become much more important to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use per 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 everyday.

Greenway 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 all of us need to avoid.

 

 

Quite simply, traditional broadband connections often struggle to manage the simultaneous demands of downloading large files, streaming videos or music, with multiple devices and appliances logged on all at once. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small company is able 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 more than 300Mbps in the UK.

Super-fast broadband connections enable users to surf the internet, stream music & video and stream television at speeds that are massively more than most internet users.

While the current average UK internet connection is around 12Mbps (2014), superfast broadband products deliver speeds of to 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 many of UK broadband connections, which use telephony lines, the UK’s fastest 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 pipes used by traditional xDSL internet .

BT also offers an as much as 76Mb fibre service called Infinity (you can get 300Mbps in some areas), and plans to make this available to millions more UK residence in in the near 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 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 getting selected ADSL2+ internet services from the companies like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

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

Your speed depends, as always, on the quality of the wiring and the distance you are from the exchange, but if you inhabit 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 best?

Among the UK’s fastest 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 with the help of its superfast fibre 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 optic network and feature headline speeds in accordance 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 super-fast connectivity?

Your initial step is to decide which fast broadband services are available to you . Check which types of connectivity are available.

 

Benefits of high speed broadband

Super-fast broadband empowers you to take advantage of all the music streaming on offer on the internet. You will have the opportunity to download movies in a matter of minutes – allowing you watch what you want , when you want it , and banishing the days of long waiting times for enormous downloads.

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

Reduced ‘ping’ means move favourable response times delivered by super fast internet means that online gamers gain an one-upmanship over the competition and can enjoy a better gaming experience.

Disadvantages of FTTC connectivity

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very near) and rely on things that are not within your control, like the age of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the BT exchange . Wherever super-fast internet is available in your area , these limiting factors may not bring many improvements in performance for a much higher annual price.

Who is  fibre broadband  for?

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

High speed broadband is also ideal for fans of online games . This is because faster connectivity gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is commonly caused by slower ADSL 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 choose a standard ADSL deal .

Greenway – Other Areas

Marsh

Runcton

Elgin Industrial Estate

Leverton

St Helens

Luss

Churchstoke

The Hendre

New Ferry

Clareview