Who needs Super-fast Broadband Fibre Connectivity ?

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

Northfield Broadband Deals For December 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 simultaneously. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or local business has the capacity to do what they want online– all concurrently– with no annoying delays.

What is super-fast broadband?

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

Super-fast broadband connections enable users to surf the internet, stream music & video and stream television at speeds that are massively higher 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 broadband networks which includes Virgin Media and BT’s Infinity fibre optic cables.

How does fibre broadband operate?

Unlike many UK broadband connections, which use telephony 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 pipes used by standard xDSL internet connectivity.

BT also offers a right up to 76Mb fibre service called 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 super fast cable broadband services of their own.

However, fast broadband is not exclusively 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 internet by subscribing to selected ADSL2+ broadband services from the likes of O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This form of connectivity uses the same cabling and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL broadband connections, but thanks to the software and technology being 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 copper and the distance you are from the exchange, but if you dwell in a town or built up area you can realistically expect speeds of more than 16Mb or more. This still provides ample bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which superfast 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 because its superfast fibre-optic broadband 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 according to 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 high speed internet services are available at your exhaage. Check which types of connectivity are available.

 

Benefits of fast internet

Super-fast internet lets you enjoy all the services available on the net. You’ll have the capacity to download movies in a within minutes – allowing you consume what you want , when you want it , and getting rid of the hanging around for astronomical downloads.

Fans of on-demand show can enjoy their favourite shows on the Sky Now TV, together with rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without interruption .

Reduced ‘ping’ means better response times delivered by super-fast internet means that when online gaming you gain a competitive advantage over the competition and can enjoy a better gaming experience.

Disadvantages of high speed broadband

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very near) and rely on things that are not within your control, like the age of wiring and the distance you live from the green box. Although super fast internet is available in your location, these limiting factors may not bring many benefits in speed for a much higher monthly price .

Who is  fibre internet connectivity for?

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

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 connectivity product – preferably fibre optic for the best service .

Fibre broadband is also ideal for fans of online console usage. This is because faster connectivity eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is often  brought on by slower DSL broadband 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 pick a traditional ADSL connection.

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