Who needs Super-fast Broadband FTTC Internet?

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

Thrapston Broadband Deals For March 2026

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 love 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 turned on at the same time. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small business manages to do what they want online– all at the same time– with no annoying delays.

What is high speed broadband?

Super-fast broadband relates to broadband connections of as much as 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 more than most broadband users.

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

How does superfast connectivity work ?

Unlike many UK internet connections, which use telephony lines, the UK’s quickest 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 composed of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much quicker than along the copper cables used by standard ADSL connectivity .

BT also offers an as high as 76Mb fibre service called 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 piggybacked on BT’s Infinity service to launch rebranded super-fast cable broadband services of their own.

However, fast broadband is not exclusively available to people in a fibre 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 internet provider’s exchange you can still get fast broadband by subscribing to selected ADSL2+ internet packages from the likes of O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This type 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 as high as 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “approximately 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 area you can realistically expect speeds of approximately 16Mb or more. This still provides more than enough bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which super-fast internet 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 as a result of its super-fast fibre connectivity 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 network and feature headline speeds in accordance with 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 high speed connectivity?

Your start is to decide which superfast broadband services are available at your exhaage. Check which service are available.

 

Benefits of fast broadband

Super fast broadband can let you utilise all the entertainment available on the internet. You will have the opportunity to download movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you watch what you want , when you demand it , and banishing the hanging around for very large downloads.

Fans of on-demand show can enjoy their best shows on the BBC iPlayer , in addition to rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without interruption .

Reduced latency means improved response times delivered by super fast internet means that when playing game online you a competitive advantage over the opposition and can enjoy a better more enjoyable experience.

Disadvantages of high speed internet

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very close ) and dependent on things that are out of your control , like the age of wiring and the distance you live from the green box. Even when super-fast internet connectivity is on offer in your location, these limiting factors may not bring many benefits in performance for a much higher cost .

Who is  fibre broadband  for?

The massive growth in the number of people streaming music , streaming video and watching TV online means that there is no longer a typical user of fibre 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 sense to enrol in a super-fast internet service – preferably fibre optic for the greatest service.

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

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

Thrapston – Other Areas

Smeeton Westerby

Redlands

Lumley

Ansteadbrook

Donnington

Haugh-head

Loughor

Coombe

Winnall

Townhead