Like Broadband...but Faster! by:Chris Holgate

With a new brand of superfast broadband just around the corner things are about to

change for the majority of the British public that are stuck with 8MBPS connections.

It is undeniable that Broadband take-up in the UK has been huge; the majority of the public now access the Internet via a broadband connection rather than a conventional dial up modem. A few weeks back I talked about broadband packages which made Internet access either free or incredibly cheap meaning that even occasional Internet users would be financially better off with a broadband connection.

Although the prices have been tumbling, a ceiling limit on the speeds obtainable has been reached and this needs to be broken through; although 8Mbps is a comfortable speed which will suit the majority of users we are lagging well behind many other parts of the world. A limited number of users in built up areas in Japan for example are currently able to receive blisteringly fast 1000Mbps speeds.

At present, the UK broadband provider for choice when it comes to the speed of connection is Virgin Media who have been offering 20Mbps for years now and have just introduced 50Mbps across the UK. Clearly the speed difference between the Virgin offering and standard ADSL which comes through your conventional phone line is huge.

This speed difference is largely because of the type of cable used for carrying signal. Virgin media currently use a comparatively new and fibre optic system ' as a result you have to live in a Virgin (or as it was known Telewest and NTL) cabled area to receive this service. Normal broadband services use traditional phone lines that rely on older copper cables. As these cables were originally designed only for carrying voice there is a limit to the speed information can be sent along them.

Although 50Mbps will be more than enough for the majority of Internet users, Virgin are currently trialling a 200Mbps broadband service in Kent. If the service were to be unveiled across the UK it would give Virgin Media customers one of the fastest broadband services in the world.

Unfortunately only 12.6 million homes are in a Virgin Media cabled area which is why many have to ADSL broadband though their conventional phone line. In order to increase the speeds available to these users BT is currently upgrading exchanges across the UK to ADSL 2+ which will offer up to 20Mbps. Although Torbay hasn't yet been switched over the exchanges should be upgraded by summer of next year which will result in an approximate doubling of speed at, most likely, no extra cost.

Once ADSL 2+ has been launched it would not be unreasonable to suggest that we have reached the limit as far as speed information can be sent down a cable made of copper in concerned. To resolve this matter for the future, British Telecom has begun to introduce its own fibre optic service across the UK. These current plans will only see 40% of UK households able to take advantage of this by 2012 making it unlikely that we will see it down here by then.

Presently, your best bet for the fastest possible broadband in areas like South Devon would be to check if you are in a broadband cabled area at www.virginmedia.com. If you are not covered it would be best to suffer/sit back and wait for the arrival of ADSL 2+ or the rollout of fibre optic technology across the UK.

About the author

Chris Holgate is a director and copy writer of the online Ink and Toner website Refresh Cartridges http://www.refreshcartridges.co.uk He writes a weekly article of all things tech related.

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