Who needs Super-fast Fibre Connections?

Broadband has become more and more vital to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use per day that rely upon 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 on a daily basis.

Saints Hill Broadband Deals For February 2023

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 wish 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 all at once. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or company has the capacity to do what they want online– all simultaneously– without any annoying delays.

What is high speed broadband?

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

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

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

How does high speed connectivity operate?

Unlike many UK internet connections, which use telephony lines, the UK’s fastest 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 faster than along the copper cables used by standard xDSL broadband .

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 residence in years to come.

 

 

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 on offer to people in a fibre 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 internet provider’s exchange you can still get fast internet by registering for selected ADSL2+ broadband services from the providers like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

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

Your speed depends, as always, on the quality of the cabling and the distance you are from the exchange, but if you live a city or built up location you can realistically expect speeds of to 16Mb or more. This still provides more than enough bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which super-fast connectivity product is the fastest?

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 as a result of its superfast fibre-optic broadband network.

BT’s Infinity package delivers 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 cabling to carry more data.

How do I get super-fast connectivity?

Your 1st step is to decide which superfast internet services are available to you . Check which products are available.

 

Benefits of super fast broadband connections

Fast internet lets you take advantage of all the video on demand on offer on the web. You’ll have the chance to download movies in a matter of minutes – allowing you view what you like, when you want it , and banishing the days of long waiting times for enormous downloads.

Fans of on-demand programmes will love 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 internet means that when online gaming you gain a competitive advantage over the opposition and can enjoy a better gaming experience.

Disadvantages of FTTC internet connectivity

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very close ) and rely on things that are out of your control , like the quality of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the green box. Although fibre internet connectivity is available in your area , these limiting factors may yield little difference in speed for a much higher annual cost .

Who is  fibre internet  for?

The massive growth in the number of people downloading music , downloading video and watching catchup TV online means that there is no more a typical user of super-fast connectivity .

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 subscribe to a fibre broadband product – preferably fibre for the greatest service.

Super fast connectivity is also ideal for fans of online gaming . Due to the fact a faster connection gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is referred to as ping,  which is commonly brought on by slower DSL 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 opt for a standard ADSL service .

Saints Hill – Other Areas

Nunholm

Tollerton

Chalkhill

Ballyreagh

Calton

Lydd-on-Sea

Glengrasco

Huyton Quarry

Woodbank

Tur Langton