Who needs Super-fast FTTC ?

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

Wath Broadband Deals For March 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 would like to avoid.

 

 

Quite simply, traditional broadband connections often struggle to manage the simultaneous demands of downloading large files, streaming videos or music, with multiple devices and appliances signed on at the same time. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or local business has the capacity to do what they want online– all concurrently– without any annoying delays.

What is fast broadband?

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

Super-fast broadband connections enable users to go online , download 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), super-fast broadband products deliver speeds of as much as 300Mbps, through sophisticated fibre-optic cabled networks especially Virgin Media and BT’s Infinity fibre optic cables.

How does fibre broadband work ?

Unlike most of UK internet connections, which use telephony 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 up of glass and plastic, which allows data to move much quicker than along the copper cables used by traditional DSL internet .

BT also offers a right 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 years to come.

 

 

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 broadband is not only available 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 internet provider’s exchange you can still get fast broadband by enrolling in selected ADSL2+ broadband services from the companies like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This sort of connectivity uses the same cabling and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL broadband connections, but as a result of the software and technology used it can deliver speeds of about 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “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 area you can realistically expect speeds of as much as 16Mb or more. This still provides sufficient bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which high speed connectivity 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 thanks to its superfast fibre-optic broadband 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 optic network and feature headline speeds in line 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 broadband ?

Your initial step is to decide which super-fast broadband services are available to you . Check which products are available.

 

Benefits of high speed internet

High speed broadband enables you to utilise all the services available on the world wide web. You’ll have the opportunity to watch movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you watch what you like, when you want it , and banishing the days of long waiting times for astronomical downloads.

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

Reduced ‘ping’ means better response times delivered by fibre internet means that when playing game online you an one-upmanship over the opponents and can enjoy a better more enjoyable experience.

Disadvantages of high speed internet connectivity

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very close ) and dependent on things that are out of your control , like the quality of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the BT exchange . Though high speed internet connectivity is on offer in your area , these limiting factors may not bring many benefits in speed for a much higher cost .

Who is  FTTC broadband  for?

The massive growth in the number 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 fibre connectivity deal – preferably fibre optic for the best service .

Super fast connectivity is also ideal for fans of online gaming . This is because a faster connection gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is known as ping,  which is often  as a resulted of slower traditionalbroadband products. This can seriously ruin your 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 .

Wath – Other Areas

East Rounton

Auchtertool

Rackham

Kings Mills

Kingshall Green

Much Hadham

Eridge Green

Penwortham

Kimpton

Walesby Grange