Who needs Superfast Fibre Connectivity ?

Broadband has become increasingly more essential to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use every day that rely 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 everyday.

Halnaker 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 would like 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 concurrently. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or local business has the chance to do what they want online– all at the same time– without any annoying delays.

What is fast broadband?

Super-fast broadband refers to broadband connections of up to 300Mbps in the UK.

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

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

How does high speed broadband work ?

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

BT also offers an up to 76Mb fibre-optic 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 future .

 

 

The likes of TalkTalk, Sky and EE have piggybacked on BT’s Infinity service to launch rebranded high speed cable broadband products of their own.

However, fast broadband is not only on offer to people in a fibre-optic broadband area . 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 broadband by enrolling in selected ADSL2+ broadband services from the providers like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

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

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

Which superfast internet product is the fastest?

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 previously mentioned services from Sky, EE and TalkTalk, which use BT’s fibre optic network and feature headline speeds in line with 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 cabling to carry more data.

How do I get fast broadband ?

Your 1st step is to decide which highspeed broadband services are available in your area . Check which products are available.

 

Advantages of high speed internet

Fast internet can let you enjoy all the entertainment services on offer on the net. You’ll have the capacity to download movies in a matter of minutes – allowing you watch what you like, when you demand it , and banishing the hanging around for enormous downloads.

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

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

Disadvantages of super-fast connectivity

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very close ) and rely on things that are not within your control, like the quality of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the green box. Despite the fact that super-fast internet is on offer in your area , these limiting factors may not bring many benefits in speed for a much higher annual price.

Who is  FTTC internet  for?

The massive growth in the quantity of people listening to music, downloading video and watching TV online means that there is no more a typical user of fibre 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 super-fast internet service – preferably fibre optic for the best experience.

Fibre broadband is also ideal for fans of online gaming . This is because a faster connection gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is often  brought on by slower traditional connectivity 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 go with a standard ADSL connection.

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