Who needs High Speed Fibre Internet ?

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 amount of tablets, smartphones, laptops, desktops, games consoles and TV’s that each person has in their homes, seems to increase every day.

Melkinthorpe Broadband Deals For June 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 all of us need 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 manages to do what they want online– all simultaneously– with no annoying delays.

What is high speed broadband?

Super-fast broadband refers to broadband connections of as much as 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 broadband users.

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

How does superfast internet work ?

Unlike many of UK broadband connections, which use telephony lines, the UK’s fastest 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 up 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 to 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 used BT’s Infinity service to launch rebranded super fast cable broadband services of their own.

However, fast internet is not only on offer to people in a fibre-optic broadband locations. Fast broadband is not exclusively on offer to people in a fibre-optic broadband area. If you live within a certain distant of your broadband provider’s exchange you can still get fast broadband by getting selected ADSL2+ broadband packages from the companies like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This style of connectivity uses the same cabling and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL internet connections, but due to the software and technology used it can deliver speeds of almost 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “around 16Mb”.

Your speed depends, as always, on the quality of the copper and the distance you are from the exchange, but if you reside in a town or built up area 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 superfast connectivity product is the quickest ?

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 because of its super-fast fibre connectivity network.

BT’s Infinity package delivers 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 according to 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 super-fast broadband ?

Your first step is to see which super-fast internet services are available in your area . Check which service are available.

 

Benefits of super-fast internet

Super-fast internet enables you to enjoy all the services on offer on the internet. You’ll manage to download movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you view what you want , when you want it , and getting rid of the days of long waiting times for enormous downloads.

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

Reduced latency means improved response times delivered by fibre connectivity means that online gamers gain an one-upmanship over the opposition and can enjoy a better more enjoyable experience.

Disadvantages of fibre connectivity

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very near) and based upon things that are not within your control, like the age of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the cabinet . Although super fast broadband is on offer in your area , these limiting factors may yield little difference in speed for a much higher monthly price .

Who is super-fast connectivity  for?

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

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 internet service – preferably fibre optic for the best experience.

Fibre internet connectivity is also ideal for fans of online console usage. This is because faster connectivity gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is referred to as ping,  which is often  as a resulted of slower ADSL 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 traditional ADSL service .

Melkinthorpe – Other Areas

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Whitehill

Muirhouse

Ashton

Roger Ground

Thorpe Bassett

Bencombe

Hallen

Smallwood Hey

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