Who needs Superfast Broadband Connectivity ?

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

Loch a Cha rnain 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 most of us wish to avoid.

 

 

Quite simply, traditional broadband connections often struggle to come to grips 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 all at once– without any annoying delays.

What is super-fast broadband?

Super-fast broadband refers to broadband connections of around 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 greater than most internet users.

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

How does super-fast 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 cables used by traditional ADSL internet connectivity.

BT also offers a more than 76Mb fibre service called Infinity (you can get 300Mbps in some areas), and plans to make this available to millions more UK residence in in the near 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 only 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 range of your internet provider’s exchange you can still get fast internet by registering selected ADSL2+ internet packages from the companies like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This type 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 around 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “right up to 16Mb”.

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

Which super-fast broadband 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 with the help of 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 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 high speed broadband ?

Your first step is to decide which super-fast internet services are available at your exhaage. Check which products are available.

 

Advantages of high bandwidth internet

Fast broadband empowers you to take advantage of all the entertainment services on offer on the world wide web. You will be able to download movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you watch what you like, when you want it , and getting rid of the days of long waiting times for very large downloads.

Fans of on-demand show can enjoy their favourite shows on the Sky Now TV, and even 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 when playing game online you a competitive advantage over the opponents and can enjoy a better playing experience.

Disadvantages of super-fast internet connectivity

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very near) and depend on things that are out of your control , like the quality of wiring and the distance you live from the exchange . Even when fibre internet connectivity is available in your location, these limiting factors may not bring many benefits in speed for a much higher monthly price .

Who is  FTTC internet connectivity for?

The massive growth in the number of people downloading music , streaming video and watching catchup TV online means that there is no longer a typical user of high speed 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 high speed broadband deal – preferably fibre optic for the best experience.

Super fast connectivity is also ideal for fans of online console usage. Due to the fact a faster connection eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is commonly triggered by slower traditional connectivity 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 take a traditional ADSL deal .

Loch a Cha rnain – Other Areas

Hedsor

Heamoor

Strangeways

Stranmillis

Blackhouse

Polglass

Waltham

Hemyock

Withington

Hadnall