Who needs Super-fast Broadband Fibre Connectivity ?

Broadband has become increasingly more necessary to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use each day that bank 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.

Highway Broadband Deals For October 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 sitting in commuter traffic, something that we all would love 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 all at once. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small company manages to do what they want online– all simultaneously– without any annoying delays.

What is quick broadband?

Super-fast broadband concerns 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), high speed broadband products deliver speeds of as much as 300Mbps, through sophisticated fibre-optic cabled networks including Virgin Media and BT’s Infinity fibre optic cables.

How does super-fast broadband work ?

Unlike many UK broadband connections, which use telephone lines, the UK’s quickest 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 standard DSL internet connectivity.

BT also offers an as high as 76Mb fibre-optic service called 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 used BT’s Infinity service to launch rebranded high speed cable broadband products of their own.

However, fast internet is not exclusively 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 range of your broadband provider’s exchange you can still get fast broadband by enrolling in selected ADSL2+ broadband packages from the likes of O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

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

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

Which high speed connectivity product is the quickest ?

Among the UK’s quickest 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 thanks to its super-fast 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 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 copper to carry more data.

How do I get super-fast connectivity?

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

 

Benefits of high bandwidth internet

Super-fast internet enables you to take advantage of all the music streaming on offer on the web. You’ll be able to download movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you watch what you like, when you like it, and banishing the hanging around for large downloads.

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

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

Disadvantages of high speed connectivity

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very close ) and depend on things that are out of your control , like the quality of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the BT exchange . Even when high speed internet connectivity is available in your location, these limiting factors may yield little difference in performance for a much higher cost .

Who is  high speed internet connectivity for?

The massive growth in the range of people streaming music , downloading video and watching TV online means that there is no more a typical user of super-fast connectivity .

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 subscribe to a high speed internet product – preferably fibre optic for the greatest service.

Super-fast internet is also ideal for fans of online gaming . Due to the fact faster connectivity eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is often  triggered by slower ADSL 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 select a traditional ADSL deal .

Highway – Other Areas

Largs

Quarrington

Knaven

West End

Waitby

Smannell

Kirkton of Maryculter

Cuttyhill

Talbenny

Thrushwood