Who needs Superfast Fibre Connections?

Broadband has become much more important to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use per day that utilise 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 everyday.

Southwater 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 being stuck in commuter traffic, something that all of us need to avoid.

 

 

Quite simply, traditional broadband connections often struggle to cope with the simultaneous demands of downloading large files, streaming videos or music, with multiple devices and appliances signed on all at once. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small company has the capacity to do what they want online– all all at once– with no annoying delays.

What is super-fast broadband?

Super-fast broadband concerns broadband connections of up to 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 more than most broadband users.

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

How does high speed internet operate?

Unlike many UK internet 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 of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much faster than along the copper cables used by standard xDSL internet connectivity.

BT also offers a to 76Mb fibre 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 piggybacked on BT’s Infinity service to launch rebranded super fast cable broadband products of their own.

However, fast broadband is not only on offer 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 broadband by enrolling in selected ADSL2+ internet services from the providers like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

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

Your speed depends, as always, on the quality of the wiring 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 plenty of bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which high speed connectivity product is the best?

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 because its superfast fibre-optic connectivity 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 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 copper to carry more data.

How do I get fibre optic connectivity?

Your first step is to decide which high speed broadband services are available to you . Check which service are available.

 

Advantages of fast broadband connections

Fast broadband enables you to take advantage of all the entertainment services on offer online. You will have the chance to download movies in a within minutes – allowing you watch what you want , when you like it, and getting rid of the hanging around for enormous downloads.

Fans of on-demand show will love their best shows on the BBC iPlayer , together with rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without buffering.

Reduced ‘ping’ means move favourable response times delivered by high speed connectivity means that online gamers gain an one-upmanship over the competition and can enjoy a better playing experience.

Disadvantages of FTTC internet

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very near) and depend on things that are out of your control , like the age of wiring and the distance you live from the cabinet . Even though super fast internet is on offer in your area , these limiting factors may not bring many improvements in performance for a much higher monthly price .

Who is super-fast connectivity  for?

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

Fibre connectivity is also ideal for fans of online gaming . This is because faster connectivity gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is referred to as ping,  which is commonly caused by slower traditionalbroadband products . 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 decide on a traditional ADSL service .

Southwater – Other Areas

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