Who needs Speedy Internet ?

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

Swansea Vale Broadband Deals For January 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 sitting in commuter traffic, something that all of us wish 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 turned on concurrently. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small company is able to do what they want online– all concurrently– without any annoying delays.

What is fast broadband?

Super-fast broadband describes broadband connections of up to 300Mbps in the UK.

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

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

How does high speed connectivity operate?

Unlike most of 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 up of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much faster than along the copper cables used by standard ADSL broadband .

BT also offers a more than 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 not too distant future.

 

 

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

However, fast internet is not only 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 broadband by getting selected ADSL2+ internet packages from the providers like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This style of connection uses the same wiring and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL phone-line connections, but thanks to the software and technology 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 inhabit a city or built up location you can realistically expect speeds of more than 16Mb or more. This still provides ample bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which super-fast connectivity product is the fastest?

Among the UK’s quickest 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 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 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 cabling to carry more data.

How do I get fibre broadband ?

Your first step is to decide which fast broadband services are available at your exhaage. Check which service are available.

 

Advantages of fast internet

High speed internet connectivity lets you take advantage of all the music streaming on offer on the web. You will manage to download movies in a matter of minutes – allowing you view what you like, when you want it , and banishing the hanging around for very large downloads.

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

Reduced latency means move favourable response times delivered by fibre broadband means that when playing game online you an one-upmanship over the opposition and can enjoy a better gaming experience.

Disadvantages of FTTC internet

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very close ) and based on things that are not within your control, like the age of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the cabinet . Regardless of whether fibre internet connectivity is available in your location, these limiting factors may yield little difference in speed for a much higher cost .

Who is  FTTC internet connectivity for?

The massive growth in the amount of people streaming music , video and watching on demand TV online means that there is no more a typical user of high speed 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 super fast internet connectivity product – preferably fibre optic for the best experience.

High speed internet connectivity is also ideal for fans of online games . This is because faster connectivity eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is known as ping,  which is often  brought on by slower DSL 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 choose a traditional ADSL service .

Swansea Vale – Other Areas

Goytre

Dinton

Cameley

Stonecrouch

Wood End

Bindon

Cargan

Higher Treween

Birling

Ashington