Who needs Super-fast Broadband Connectivity ?

Broadband has become much more essential to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use every day that depend on broadband connectivity seems to increase. The quantity of tablets, smartphones, laptops, desktops, games consoles and TV’s that each person has in their homes, seems to increase everyday.

Retire 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 being stuck in commuter traffic, something that we all need to avoid.

 

 

Quite simply, traditional broadband connections often struggle to handle the simultaneous demands of downloading large files, streaming videos or music, with multiple devices and appliances logged on concurrently. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or company has the capacity to do what they want online– all at the same time– with no annoying delays.

What is quick broadband?

Super-fast broadband describes broadband connections of as much as 300Mbps in the UK.

Super-fast broadband connections enable users to go online , stream music & video and stream television at speeds that are massively more than most broadband users.

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

How does super-fast internet work ?

Unlike most UK broadband connections, which use telephony lines, the UK’s quickest broadband 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 faster than along the copper pipes used by standard xDSL internet .

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 residence in in the near 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 internet is not only available 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 broadband provider’s exchange you can still get fast internet by subscribing to selected ADSL2+ broadband packages from the likes of O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This kind of connectivity 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 about 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “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 area you can realistically expect speeds of to 16Mb or more. This still provides plenty of 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 thanks to its super-fast fibre 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 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 cabling to carry more data.

How do I get fibre optic connectivity?

Your start is to see which highspeed internet services are available in your area . Check which types of connectivity are available.

 

Advantages of super-fast broadband connections

Super-fast broadband enables you to take advantage of all the music streaming on offer on the net. You will have the capacity to watch movies in a within minutes – allowing you watch what you like, when you like it, and banishing the hanging around for big downloads.

Fans of on-demand show can enjoy their favourite shows on the BBC iPlayer , together with rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without buffering.

Reduced ‘ping’ means move favourable response times delivered by super fast broadband means that online gamers gain an one-upmanship over the opposition and can enjoy a better more enjoyable experience.

Disadvantages of FTTC internet connectivity

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very near) and based upon things that are out of your control , like the age of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the exchange . Regardless of whether high speed broadband 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  for?

The massive growth in the range of people streaming music , downloading video and watching catchup TV online means that there is no more a typical user of fibre 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 super fast internet connectivity deal – preferably fibre optic for the best service .

Super fast broadband is also ideal for fans of online console usage. Due to the fact a faster connection gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is often  triggered by slower DSL internet connectivity services . This can seriously ruin your online gaming pleasure.

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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