Who needs Superfast Fibre Connections?

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

Hambleden 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 being stuck in commuter traffic, something that all of us wish to avoid.

 

 

Quite simply, traditional broadband connections often struggle to cope with the simultaneous demands of downloading large files, streaming videos or music, with multiple devices and appliances turned on simultaneously. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or business is able to do what they want online– all at the same time– with no annoying delays.

What is super-fast broadband?

Super-fast broadband describes broadband connections of as high as 300Mbps in the UK.

Super-fast broadband connections enable users to go online , 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 internet products deliver speeds of approximately 300Mbps, through sophisticated fibre-optic broadband networks like Virgin Media and BT’s Infinity fibre optic cables.

How does high speed connectivity work ?

Unlike the majority of 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 faster than along the copper cables used by traditional xDSL broadband .

BT also offers an as high as 76Mb fibre-optic 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 not too distant future.

 

 

The likes of TalkTalk, Sky and EE have resold BT’s Infinity service to launch rebranded super-fast cable broadband products of their own.

However, fast internet is not exclusively available to people in a fibre 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 broadband provider’s exchange you can still get fast broadband by signing up for selected ADSL2+ internet services from the providers like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This type of connectivity uses the same wiring and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL broadband connections, but thanks to the software and technology used it can deliver speeds of almost 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 dwell in a town or built up area you can realistically expect speeds of as much as 16Mb or more. This still provides plenty of bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which high speed internet product is the fastest?

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 thanks to its super-fast fibre broadband 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 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 cabling to carry more data.

How do I get high speed broadband ?

Your 1st step is to decide which fast internet services are available to you . Check which service are available.

 

Advantages of high bandwidth broadband connections

Super fast broadband enables you to make the most of all the entertainment services available on the world wide web. You’ll have the capacity to watch movies in a within minutes – allowing you consume what you want , when you want it , and getting rid of the hanging around for large downloads.

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

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

Disadvantages of super-fast internet connectivity

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very close ) and rely on things that are not within your control, like the age of wiring and the distance you live from the BT exchange . Whether or not super fast broadband is on offer in your location, these limiting factors may yield little difference in speed for a much higher price .

Who is  fibre broadband  for?

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

Super-fast broadband is also ideal for fans of online gaming . This is because faster connectivity gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is known as ping,  which is often  brought on by slower DSL internet products. 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 go for a standard ADSL deal .

Hambleden – Other Areas

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Frithelstock Stone

Pimlico

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