Who needs Speedy Fibre Connections?

Broadband has become more and more essential to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use every single day that utilise broadband connectivity seems to increase. The range of tablets, smartphones, laptops, desktops, games consoles and TV’s that each person has in their homes, seems to increase daily.

Upper Ardchronie Broadband Deals For December 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 we all wish 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 logged on concurrently. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small business is able to do what they want online– all at the same time– without any annoying delays.

What is high speed broadband?

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

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

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

How does superfast internet work ?

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

BT also offers an up 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 in the near future .

 

 

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

However, fast broadband is not only on offer 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 range of your internet provider’s exchange you can still get fast broadband by registering for selected ADSL2+ broadband services 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 because of the software and technology used it can deliver speeds of as high as 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “almost 16Mb”.

Your speed depends, as always, on the quality of the copper and the distance you are from the exchange, but if you inhabit a town or built up area 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 broadband product is the fastest?

Among the UK’s fastest 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 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 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 copper to carry more data.

How do I get fibre broadband ?

Your 1st step is to decide which high speed internet services are available at your exhaage. Check which products are available.

 

Advantages of fast broadband connectivity

Fast internet can let you utilise all the video on demand on offer on the world wide web. You’ll be able to download movies in a matter of minutes – allowing you consume 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 will love their best shows on the Sky Now TV, including rival services from ITV and Channel 4, smoothly and without interruption .

Reduced latency means improved response times delivered by high speed internet means that online gamers gain an one-upmanship over the opponents and can enjoy a better gaming experience.

Disadvantages of fibre internet

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very close ) and depend on things that are out of your control , like the age of wiring and the distance you live from the green box. Although fibre internet connectivity is available in your location, these limiting factors may not bring many benefits in speed for a much higher annual price.

Who is  FTTC internet  for?

The massive growth in the range of people streaming music , downloading video and watching on demand 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 enrol for a super fast internet connectivity product – preferably fibre for the greatest service.

Fibre connectivity is also ideal for fans of online gaming . This is because a faster connection eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is referred to as ping,  which is commonly triggered by slower DSL broadband services . 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 favour a standard ADSL connection.

Upper Ardchronie – Other Areas

Glen Tanar

Brockhurst

Broom Hill

Eckington Corner

Blowick

Crows-an-wra

Milesmark

Petton

Riccall

Little Missnden