Who needs Super-fast Fibre Connections?

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

Shirebrook 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 being stuck in commuter traffic, something that most of us need 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 all at once. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or local business has the capacity to do what they want online– all at the same time– with no annoying delays.

What is fast broadband?

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

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

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

How does high speed connectivity operate?

Unlike most of UK broadband connections, which use telephony lines, the UK’s fastest internet 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 cables used by traditional DSL broadband .

BT also offers a to 76Mb fibre-optic service called Infinity (you can get 300Mbps in some areas), and plans to make this available to millions more UK homes in in the future .

 

 

The likes of TalkTalk, Sky and EE have used BT’s Infinity service to launch rebranded high speed cable broadband services of their own.

However, fast broadband is not exclusively 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 distant of your broadband provider’s exchange you can still get fast internet by enrolling in selected ADSL2+ internet services from the companies like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

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

Your speed depends, as always, on the quality of the cabling and the distance you are from the exchange, but if you live in a city 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 superfast broadband product is the fastest?

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 due to its superfast fibre broadband 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 optic 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 cabling to carry more data.

How do I get fibre connectivity?

Your 1st step is to decide which highspeed broadband services are available in your area . Check which service are available.

 

Advantages of high bandwidth broadband

Super fast broadband enables you to enjoy all the music streaming on offer online. You will have the capacity to download movies in a matter of minutes – allowing you watch what you want , when you like it, and getting rid of the days of long waiting times for very large downloads.

Fans of on-demand programmes can enjoy their best shows on the Sky Now TV, along with rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without buffering.

Reduced ‘ping’ means better response times delivered by super-fast internet means that when playing game online you an one-upmanship over the opposition and can enjoy a better more enjoyable experience.

Disadvantages of super-fast internet connectivity

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very near) and dependent on things that are not within your control, like the age of wiring and the distance you live from the green box. Even though fibre broadband is available in your area , these limiting factors may not bring many improvements in speed for a much higher monthly price .

Who is super-fast internet  for?

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

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 enrol for a super-fast internet product – preferably fibre optic for the best service.

Super fast internet is also ideal for fans of online console usage. This is because faster connectivity gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is known as ping,  which is often  brought on by slower traditional internet connectivity services . This can seriously ruin your online gaming experience .

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

Shirebrook – Other Areas

Moor End

Hook End

Worthing

Bank Top

Treuddyn

Burghill

Broughton In Furness

Meinciau

Toll End

Chard Junction