Who needs Super-fast Broadband FTTC ?

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

Hawley 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 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 business has the opportunity to do what they want online– all all at once– without any annoying delays.

What is fast broadband?

Super-fast broadband refers to broadband connections of as much as 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 internet connection is around 12Mbps (2014), superfast broadband products deliver speeds of as much as 300Mbps, through sophisticated fibre-optic cabled networks such as Virgin Media and BT’s Infinity fibre optic cables.

How does superfast connectivity operate?

Unlike the majority of UK internet connections, which use telephone lines, the UK’s fastest 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 comprised of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much quicker than along the copper cables used by standard ADSL internet connectivity.

BT also offers a more than 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 services of their own.

However, fast internet is not exclusively on offer 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 distant of your internet provider’s exchange you can still get fast internet by signing up for selected ADSL2+ broadband services from the providers like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

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

Your speed depends, as always, on the quality of the cabling and the distance you are from the exchange, but if you live a city or built up location 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 fastest?

Among the UK’s fastest internet 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 due to its superfast fibre-optic broadband 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 accordance 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 copper to carry more data.

How do I get fibre broadband ?

Your start is to see which fast broadband services are available at your exhaage. Check which products are available.

 

Advantages of high bandwidth broadband connectivity

High speed internet lets you take advantage of all the video on demand on offer on the web. You will be able to watch movies in a matter of minutes – allowing you watch what you like, when you demand it , and getting rid of the hanging around for huge downloads.

Fans of on-demand TV can enjoy their best shows on the Sky Now TV, in addition to rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without interruption .

Reduced latency means move favourable response times delivered by super-fast connectivity means that when online gaming you gain a competitive advantage over the opposition and can enjoy a better more enjoyable experience.

Disadvantages of FTTC broadband

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very close ) and depend on things that are not within your control, like the quality of wiring and the distance you live from the BT exchange . Though fibre broadband is on offer in your area , these limiting factors may yield little difference in speed for a much higher annual cost .

Who is  high speed connectivity  for?

The massive growth in the range of people listening to music, downloading video and watching on demand TV online means that there is no more a typical user of fibre 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 high speed broadband service – preferably fibre optic for the very best service.

Super-fast broadband is also ideal for fans of online games . Due to the fact faster connectivity gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is known as ping,  which is commonly triggered by slower DSL connectivity services . 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 decide on a standard ADSL connection.

Hawley – Other Areas

Banbridge

Leavesden

Wightwick Manor

Lower Woodbury

Dargill

Lamberden

Morton

Locharbriggs

Kiveton Park Station

Llantrisant