Who needs Super-fast Broadband Fibre Connections?

Broadband has become more and more important to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use every single day that bank on 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 daily.

Russell\s Water Broadband Deals For October 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 sitting in commuter traffic, something that all 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 logged on at the same time. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or local business has the opportunity to do what they want online– all at the same time– without any annoying delays.

What is fast broadband?

Super-fast broadband relates 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 broadband users.

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

How does super-fast connectivity 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 quicker than along the copper pipes used by traditional DSL internet connectivity.

BT also offers an as high as 76Mb fibre 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 resold BT’s Infinity service to launch rebranded super fast cable broadband services 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 internet by subscribing to selected ADSL2+ broadband services from the likes of O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This style of connectivity uses the same wiring and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL internet connections, but because of the software and technology being used it can deliver speeds of approximately 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “almost 16Mb”.

Your speed depends, as always, on the quality of the copper and the distance you are from the exchange, but if you inhabit a city 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 super-fast connectivity product is the best?

Among the UK’s quickest 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 as a result of its superfast fibre-optic connectivity 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 copper to carry more data.

How do I get fast connectivity?

Your first step is to decide which highspeed broadband services are available at your exhaage. Check which products are available.

 

Benefits of high bandwidth broadband connectivity

Fast internet connectivity enables you to make the most of all the video on demand available online. You’ll have the opportunity to watch movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you consume what you want , when you like it, and banishing the hanging around for very large downloads.

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

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

Disadvantages of fibre internet

Speeds are never 100% 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 cabinet . Regardless of whether fibre internet connectivity is on offer in your area , these limiting factors may not bring many benefits in speed for a much higher annual price.

Who is super-fast connectivity  for?

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

Super-fast broadband 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 caused by slower DSL internet connectivity products . 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 go with a standard ADSL service .

Russell\s Water – Other Areas

Stanton St Bernard

Lakenham

Cwrt

Roughhill

Lower Arncott

Waltham St Lawrence

Dundonnell

Fulletby

Ythanwells

Tempsford