Who needs Superfast Connections ?

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

Rhode Broadband Deals For December 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 all of us would like to avoid.

 

 

Quite simply, traditional broadband connections often struggle to manage the simultaneous demands of downloading large files, streaming videos or music, with multiple devices and appliances logged on all at once. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small company has the capacity to do what they want online– all at the same time– without any annoying delays.

What is fast broadband?

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

Super-fast broadband connections enable users to connect to the internet , download 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), superfast broadband products deliver speeds of up to 300Mbps, through sophisticated fibre-optic broadband networks especially Virgin Media and BT’s Infinity fibre optic cables.

How does high speed connectivity operate?

Unlike the majority of UK broadband connections, which use telephony lines, the UK’s quickest broadband 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 of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much quicker than along the copper pipes used by standard ADSL internet .

BT also offers an as much as 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 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 products of their own.

However, fast internet is not only available to people in a fibre-optic 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 internet provider’s exchange you can still get fast broadband by enrolling in selected ADSL2+ broadband services from the likes of O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This style of connectivity uses the same cables and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL internet connections, but because of the software and technology being used it can deliver speeds of almost 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “approximately 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 city or built up area you can realistically expect speeds of approximately 16Mb or more. This still provides more than enough bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which superfast broadband product is the quickest ?

Among the UK’s fastest broadband 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-optic connectivity 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 network and feature headline speeds in line 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 fibre optic connectivity?

Your start is to decide which fast internet services are available at your exhaage. Check which types of connectivity are available.

 

Benefits of fast broadband connectivity

Fast internet enables you to use all the entertainment services available on the world wide web. You’ll have the capacity to download movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you watch what you want , when you demand it , and banishing the hanging around for huge downloads.

Fans of on-demand TV will love their favourite shows on the BBC iPlayer , and even rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without buffering.

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

Disadvantages of high speed broadband

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very close ) and dependent on things that are out of your control , like the quality of wiring and the distance you live from the exchange . Whether or not super-fast broadband is available in your area , these limiting factors may not bring many benefits in performance for a much higher monthly price .

Who is  high speed internet connectivity for?

The massive growth in the number of people downloading music , streaming video and watching catchup TV online means that there is no longer 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 sense to register for a fibre connectivity deal – preferably fibre optic for the best service.

Super-fast internet 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 known as ping,  which is commonly as a resulted of slower traditional internet connectivity products . This can seriously ruin your gaming pleasure.

If you only use the internet for checking your e-mail and for the occasional search, it’s more prudent to take a standard ADSL deal .

Rhode – Other Areas

Sandy

Belchamp St. Paul

Garndiffaith

Crew Lower

Broughton Lodges

Upper Eastern Green

Kinellar

Poundford

Kirkton of Lethendy

Chesterton