Who needs Super-fast Internet ?

Broadband has become much more important to our everyday lives and the amount of devices that we use every day that rely on broadband connectivity seems to increase. The amount of tablets, smartphones, laptops, desktops, games consoles and TV’s that everyone has in their homes, seems to increase every day.

Westbury On Trym Broadband Deals For April 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 sitting in commuter traffic, something that all of us wish 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 logged on at the same time. With Superfast fibre broadband though, everyone within a home or small company has the ability to do what they want online– all simultaneously– without any annoying delays.

What is super-fast broadband?

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

Super-fast broadband connections enable users to surf the internet, 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), superfast internet products deliver speeds of as much as 300Mbps, through sophisticated fibre-optic broadband networks such as Virgin Media and BT’s Infinity fibre optic cables.

How does superfast internet 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 faster than along the copper pipes used by standard xDSL internet .

BT also offers an up to 76Mb fibre-optic service called Infinity (you can get 300Mbps in some areas), and plans to make this available to millions more UK residence in in the not too distant future.

 

 

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

However, fast internet is not only 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 range of your internet provider’s exchange you can still get fast broadband by subscribing to selected ADSL2+ internet services from the providers like O2, Sky, Orange and TalkTalk.

ADSL2+

This kind of connectivity uses the same wiring and telephone exchanges as regular ADSL internet connections, but as a result of the software and technology used it can deliver speeds of up to 24Mbps, however most advertised speeds are around “around 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 to 16Mb or more. This still provides plenty of bandwidth for heavy internet users, and at a smaller cost than cable.

Which super-fast internet product is the best?

Among the UK’s fastest 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 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 optic network and feature headline speeds in line with 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 super-fast connectivity?

Your initial step is to decide which super-fast internet services are available at your exhaage. Check which types of connectivity are available.

 

Benefits of super fast internet

Super fast internet connectivity empowers you to make the most of all the music streaming available on the world wide web. You’ll manage to watch movies in a in a few minutes – allowing you consume what you like, when you demand it , and getting rid of the days of long waiting times for very large downloads.

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

Reduced latency means improved response times delivered by high speed connectivity means that when playing game online you a competitive advantage over the opponents and can enjoy a better playing experience.

Disadvantages of super-fast internet

Speeds are never 100% as advertised (although are often very close ) and based on things that are out of your control , like the quality of wiring and the distance you live from the cabinet . Even though super-fast internet connectivity is on offer in your location, these limiting factors may yield little difference in performance for a much higher price .

Who is  fibre internet  for?

The massive growth in the range of people streaming music , downloading video and watching TV online means that there is no more a typical user of super-fast internet 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 for a fibre internet product – preferably fibre for the very best service.

Super fast connectivity is also ideal for fans of online gaming . Due to the fact a faster connection gets rid of the delays to in-game responsiveness. This is known as ping,  which is often  caused by slower ADSL connectivity 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 choose a traditional ADSL deal .

Westbury On Trym – Other Areas

Fairoak

Southill

Kempley Green

Ridgeway

Sutton Courtenay

Mount Pleasant

Bedgebury Cross

Carleton Forehoe

Copse Hill

Shandwick