Who needs High Speed Fibre Internet ?

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

Seaview Broadband Deals For September 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 concurrently. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or company has the ability to do what they want online– all all at once– without any annoying delays.

What is quick broadband?

Super-fast broadband relates to broadband connections of about 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 broadband connection is around 12Mbps (2014), high speed broadband products deliver speeds of as much as 300Mbps, through sophisticated fibre-optic broadband networks which includes Virgin Media and BT’s Infinity fibre optic cables.

How does superfast connectivity work ?

Unlike most of UK internet connections, which use telephone lines, the UK’s fastest 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 up of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much faster than along the copper pipes used by standard ADSL internet .

BT also offers an as high as 76Mb fibre service called Infinity (you can get 300Mbps in some areas), and plans to make this available to millions more UK homes 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 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 subscribing to selected ADSL2+ internet services from the likes of O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This sort of connectivity uses the same cabling and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL phone-line connections, but thanks to the software and technology used it can deliver speeds of almost 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “right up to 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 town or built up location you can realistically expect speeds of more than 16Mb or more. This still provides sufficient bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which super-fast connectivity product is the quickest ?

Among the UK’s fastest connectivity 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 with the help of its superfast fibre 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 super-fast broadband ?

Your initial step is to decide which fast internet services are available to you . Check which products are available.

 

Benefits of high speed broadband connections

Super fast internet can let you utilise all the entertainment services available online. You’ll manage to download movies in a matter of minutes – allowing you view what you like, when you demand it , and getting rid of the days of long waiting times for very large downloads.

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

Reduced latency means improved response times delivered by high speed internet means that online gamers gain an one-upmanship over the competition and can enjoy a better gaming experience.

Disadvantages of fibre broadband

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very close ) and based upon things that are out of your control , like the quality of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the green box. Whether high speed internet is available in your location, these limiting factors may not bring many benefits in speed for a much higher annual cost .

Who is super-fast broadband  for?

The massive growth in the number of people downloading music , downloading video and watching on demand TV online means that there is no longer a typical user of super-fast internet 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 sense to join a super-fast internet deal – preferably fibre optic for the very best service.

High speed internet is also ideal for fans of online games . This is because a faster connection gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is commonly triggered by slower DSL internet connectivity 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 decide on a standard ADSL service .

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