Who needs High Speed Fibre Connections?

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

Plymouth 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 sitting in commuter traffic, something that most of us need 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 signed on at the same time. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small company is able to do what they want online– all all at once– with no annoying delays.

What is super-fast broadband?

Super-fast broadband refers to 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 above most internet users.

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

How does fibre broadband operate?

Unlike many UK broadband connections, which use telephone 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 composed of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much quicker than along the copper pipes used by standard xDSL internet .

BT also offers an as much as 76Mb fibre-optic service called Infinity (you can get 300Mbps in some areas), and plans to make this available to millions more UK homes in years to come.

 

 

The likes of TalkTalk, Sky and EE have used BT’s Infinity service to launch rebranded super fast cable broadband products of their own.

However, fast broadband is not exclusively available 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 internet provider’s exchange you can still get fast broadband by subscribing to selected ADSL2+ internet services from the companies like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

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

Your speed depends, as always, on the quality of the copper and the distance you are from the exchange, but if you live a town or built up area 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 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 with the help of its superfast fibre-optic broadband 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 optic 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 high speed broadband ?

Your first step is to see which fast broadband services are available to you . Check which service are available.

 

Benefits of super-fast broadband connectivity

Super-fast internet connectivity enables you to enjoy all the entertainment available on the world wide web. You’ll have the ability to watch movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you watch what you want , when you like it, and getting rid of the days of long waiting times for large downloads.

Fans of on-demand show can enjoy their best shows on the Sky Now TV, and also rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without buffering.

Reduced ‘ping’ means improved 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 gaming experience.

Disadvantages of FTTC internet

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very close ) and depend on things that are not within your control, like the quality of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the green box. Even though super fast connectivity is on offer in your location, these limiting factors may not bring many improvements in performance for a much higher monthly cost .

Who is super-fast internet  for?

The massive growth in the range of people downloading music , streaming video and watching TV online means that there is no longer a typical user of super-fast 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 super-fast internet product – preferably fibre optic for the best experience.

Super fast broadband is also ideal for fans of online gaming . This is because faster connectivity eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is commonly triggered by slower ADSL internet products . This can seriously ruin your 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.

Plymouth – Other Areas

Stowmarket

Wheathill

Auchencrow

St Wenn

Gordonstown

Gorseinon

Wothorpe

Barnsley

Chalmington

Warwick Wold