Who needs Super-fast Broadband Connections ?

Broadband has become much more necessary 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 everyone has in their homes, seems to increase on a daily basis.

Sheepy Magna Broadband Deals For October 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 sitting in commuter traffic, something that most of us need to avoid.

 

 

Quite simply, traditional broadband connections often struggle to deal with 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 manages to do what they want online– all all at once– with no annoying delays.

What is quick broadband?

Super-fast broadband concerns broadband connections of more than 300Mbps in the UK.

Super-fast broadband connections enable users to surf the internet, stream music & video and stream television at speeds that are massively above most broadband users.

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

How does superfast connectivity operate?

Unlike most UK internet connections, which use telephony lines, the UK’s fastest 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 connectivity.

BT also offers an up to 76Mb fibre service called BT 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 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 broadband area . Fast broadband is not exclusively on offer to people in a fibre-optic broadband area. If you live within a certain distant of your internet provider’s exchange you can still get fast internet by signing up for selected ADSL2+ internet services from the companies like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This kind of connection uses the same cabling and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL broadband connections, but due to the software and technology used it can deliver speeds of about 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 live in a town or built up location you can realistically expect speeds of around 16Mb or more. This still provides more than enough bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which high speed 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 because of its superfast fibre broadband 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 according to 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 super-fast connectivity?

Your 1st step is to decide which high speed broadband services are available at your exhaage. Check which types of connectivity are available.

 

Advantages of super-fast internet

Fast broadband empowers you to use all the entertainment on offer on-line. You will be able to download movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you consume what you want , when you demand it , and getting rid of the hanging around for very large downloads.

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

Reduced latency means move favourable response times delivered by fibre broadband means that when online gaming you gain a competitive advantage over the opposition and can enjoy a better gaming experience.

Disadvantages of super-fast connectivity

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very near) and rely on things that are out of your control , like the age of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the cabinet . Regardless of whether super fast internet connectivity is on offer in your location, these limiting factors may yield little difference in performance for a much higher annual price.

Who is  fibre internet connectivity for?

The massive growth in the number of people listening to music, streaming video and watching on demand TV online means that there is no longer a typical user of super-fast 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 good sense to sign up for a fibre connectivity product – preferably fibre optic for the very best service.

High speed broadband 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 called ping,  which is commonly as a resulted of slower traditional internet 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 go with a traditional ADSL connection.

Sheepy Magna – Other Areas

Defford

Burley

Caversham

Corpach

Edinbane

Marpleridge

Broome

Marnoch

Broadbush

Odiham