Who needs High Speed FTTC ?

Broadband has become much more necessary to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use every 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 on a daily basis.

West Blatchington Broadband Deals For October 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 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 logged on simultaneously. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or company manages to do what they want online– all concurrently– without any annoying delays.

What is quick broadband?

Super-fast broadband describes broadband connections of more than 300Mbps in the UK.

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

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

How does superfast broadband operate?

Unlike many UK broadband connections, which use telephone lines, the UK’s quickest 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 pipes used by traditional DSL broadband .

BT also offers a more than 76Mb fibre-optic service called BT Infinity (you can get 300Mbps in some areas), and plans to make this available to millions more UK residence in in the future .

 

 

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

However, fast internet is not exclusively on offer 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 range of your broadband provider’s exchange you can still get fast internet by getting selected ADSL2+ internet packages from the likes of O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This kind of connection uses the same cables and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL phone-line connections, but due to the software and technology used it can deliver speeds of as high as 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 dwell in a town or built up location you can realistically expect speeds of more than 16Mb or more. This still provides sufficient bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which super-fast broadband product is the best?

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 its super-fast fibre-optic broadband 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.

 

 

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 1st step is to decide which fast broadband services are available to you . Check which types of connectivity are available.

 

Advantages of super-fast broadband connections

Super fast broadband can let you utilise all the music streaming on offer on the net. You will be able to watch movies in a matter of minutes – allowing you consume what you want , when you demand it , and banishing the days of long waiting times for astronomical downloads.

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

Reduced latency means better response times delivered by super fast internet means that online gamers gain a competitive advantage over the competition and can enjoy a better playing experience.

Disadvantages of FTTC internet

Speeds are never guaranteed as advertised (although are often very near) and dependent on things that are not within your control, like the age of copper connectivity and the distance you live from the BT exchange . Whether super-fast broadband is available in your area , these limiting factors may not bring many benefits in speed for a much higher annual price.

Who is super-fast connectivity  for?

The massive growth in the quantity of people streaming music , video and watching catchup TV online means that there is no longer a typical user of high speed internet .

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 broadband product – preferably fibre optic for the very best service.

Fibre internet connectivity is also ideal for fans of online games . This is because a faster connection eliminates the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is called ping,  which is often  as a resulted of slower DSL broadband 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 prefer a standard ADSL service .

West Blatchington – Other Areas

Auchnarrow

Catterick Bridge

Barlow

Aldon

New England

Hentland

Oxley Green

Portway

Cadshaw

Yardley Wood