Who needs Quick Fibre Connections?

Broadband has become more and more essential to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use every single day that utilise 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 everyday.

Pontcysyllte Broadband Deals For October 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 would love 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 all at once. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small company has the ability to do what they want online– all at the same time– 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 surf the internet, download music & video and stream television at speeds that are massively more than most internet users.

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

How does fibre connectivity work ?

Unlike many of UK broadband connections, which use telephone 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 made of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much quicker than along the copper pipes used by traditional ADSL connectivity .

BT also offers a to 76Mb fibre-optic service called BT Infinity (you can get 300Mbps in some areas), and plans to make this available to millions more UK residence in in the future .

 

 

The likes of TalkTalk, Sky and EE have piggybacked on BT’s Infinity service to launch rebranded super fast cable broadband products 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 range of your broadband provider’s exchange you can still get fast broadband by enrolling in selected ADSL2+ internet packages from the companies like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This sort of connectivity uses the same cables and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL internet connections, but thanks to the software and technology used it can deliver speeds of approximately 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “about 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 location you can realistically expect speeds of about 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 fastest?

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 as a result of its super-fast fibre-optic 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 in accordance 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 high speed connectivity?

Your initial step is to see which high speed internet services are available in your area . Check which products are available.

 

Advantages of super-fast broadband

Fast internet empowers you to make the most of all the video on demand on offer on-line. You will have the capacity to watch movies in a matter of 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 can enjoy their favourite shows on the Sky Now TV, together with rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without buffering.

Reduced ‘ping’ means better response times delivered by fibre internet means that online gamers gain an one-upmanship over the opponents and can enjoy a better gaming experience.

Disadvantages of fibre broadband

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very near) and based on things that are not within your control, like the quality of wiring and the distance you live from the BT exchange . Despite the fact that super fast connectivity is available in your location, these limiting factors may not bring many benefits in performance for a much higher annual price.

Who is super-fast internet connectivity for?

The massive growth in the range of people streaming music , streaming video and watching catchup TV online means that there is no more a typical user of high speed broadband .

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 good sense to enrol for a super fast internet product – preferably fibre for the greatest service.

High speed internet connectivity is also ideal for fans of online gaming . This is because a faster connection gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is referred to as ping,  which is commonly triggered by slower traditionalbroadband services . 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 opt for a standard ADSL connection.

Pontcysyllte – Other Areas

Kedington

Haytons Bent

St. Brides Netherwent

Gayton Thorpe

Tirryside

South Zeal

Bredons Hardwick

Rockland St Mary

Ruardean Woodside

Frogmore