Who needs Speedy FTTC ?

Broadband has become increasingly more necessary to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use on a daily basis that rely on broadband connectivity seems to increase. The number of tablets, smartphones, laptops, desktops, games consoles and TV’s that everyone has in their homes, seems to increase each day.

Hockenden Broadband Deals For April 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 would love 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 signed on all at once. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or local business has the capacity to do what they want online– all all at once– without any annoying delays.

What is super-fast broadband?

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

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

While the current average UK broadband connection is around 12Mbps (2014), high speed broadband products deliver speeds of as high as 300Mbps, through sophisticated fibre-optic cabled networks like Virgin Media and BT’s Infinity fibre optic cables.

How does fibre connectivity work ?

Unlike the majority of UK internet connections, which use telephony lines, the UK’s quickest 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 of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much faster than along the copper pipes used by standard ADSL broadband .

BT also offers a right up to 76Mb fibre 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 not too distant 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 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 internet by subscribing to selected ADSL2+ internet services from the providers 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 due to the software and technology used it can deliver speeds of as high as 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “as high as 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 city or built up location you can realistically expect speeds of approximately 16Mb or more. This still provides ample bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which super-fast connectivity product is the quickest ?

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 with the help of its superfast fibre-optic 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 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 copper to carry more data.

How do I get fibre connectivity?

Your start is to decide which superfast broadband services are available to you . Check which types of connectivity are available.

 

Advantages of super fast broadband

High speed internet connectivity enables you to make the most of all the entertainment services on offer online. You’ll have the ability to download movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you view what you like, when you demand it , and getting rid of the hanging around for enormous downloads.

Fans of on-demand show will love their favourite shows on the Sky Now TV, besides rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without buffering.

Reduced latency means move favourable response times delivered by super-fast connectivity means that online gamers gain an one-upmanship over the competition and can enjoy a better more enjoyable experience.

Disadvantages of high speed internet connectivity

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very close ) and dependent on things that are out of your control , like the quality of wiring and the distance you live from the green box. Even though fibre internet connectivity is available in your area , these limiting factors may not bring many benefits in performance for a much higher annual cost .

Who is  high speed internet  for?

The massive growth in the amount of people listening to music, video and watching on demand TV online means that there is no longer a typical user of super fast internet .

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 sense to subscribe to a super fast internet connectivity product – preferably fibre optic for the very best service.

Super-fast internet is also ideal for fans of online console usage. This is because faster connectivity eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is known as ping,  which is commonly caused by slower traditional internet connectivity products . This can seriously ruin your online gaming pleasure.

If you only use the internet for checking your e-mail and for the occasional search, it’s more prudent to go with a traditional ADSL connection.

Hockenden – Other Areas

Ightham Common

Tretio

Srannda

Ashendon

Heathfield

Knaith

Little Kingshill

Broadhempston

Malvern Common

Shortheath