Who needs Superfast Broadband Fibre Internet ?

Broadband has become much more vital to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use per day that depend on broadband connectivity seems to increase. The number of tablets, smartphones, laptops, desktops, games consoles and TV’s that each person has in their homes, seems to increase everyday.

Swainby Broadband Deals For April 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 most of us would like 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 signed on all at once. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small company has the ability to do what they want online– all concurrently– without any annoying delays.

What is super-fast broadband?

Super-fast broadband relates to broadband connections of as high as 300Mbps in the UK.

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

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

How does super-fast internet operate?

Unlike many UK internet connections, which use telephone 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 composed of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much faster than along the copper pipes used by traditional DSL broadband .

BT also offers an as high as 76Mb fibre-optic 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 future .

 

 

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

However, fast internet is not only on offer to people in a fibre-optic broadband locations. 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 joining selected ADSL2+ broadband services from the likes of O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This form of connection uses the same wiring and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL internet connections, but due to the software and technology being used it can deliver speeds of around 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “right up to 16Mb”.

Your speed depends, as always, on the quality of the wiring and the distance you are from the exchange, but if you reside in 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 superfast internet product is the best?

Among the UK’s fastest 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 thanks to its superfast fibre 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.

 

 

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 copper to carry more data.

How do I get fast broadband ?

Your 1st step is to see which super-fast internet services are available at your exhaage. Check which products are available.

 

Benefits of super fast internet

Super fast internet connectivity can let you use all the entertainment on offer on the web. You’ll manage to download movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you watch what you want , when you want it , and getting rid of the hanging around for big downloads.

Fans of on-demand TV can enjoy their favourite shows on the Sky Now TV, including rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without interruption .

Reduced ‘ping’ means move favourable response times delivered by super fast broadband means that when playing game online you an one-upmanship over the opponents and can enjoy a better playing experience.

Disadvantages of FTTC connectivity

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very near) and rely on things that are out of your control , like the quality of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the BT exchange . Regardless of whether super-fast internet is on offer in your area , these limiting factors may not bring many improvements in speed for a much higher price .

Who is  FTTC internet connectivity for?

The massive growth in the number of people downloading music , downloading video and watching TV online means that there is no longer 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 register for a high speed connectivity product – preferably fibre optic for the best service.

Fibre internet connectivity is also ideal for fans of online gaming . Due to the fact faster connectivity eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is often  as a resulted of slower traditional connectivity products. This can seriously ruin your gaming pleasure.

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 deal .

Swainby – Other Areas

Burgh next Aylsham

Shipton Moyne

Sidcup

Pickney

Highmoor

Burge End

Marsham

Walton-on-Thames

Glenboig

Coltfield