Broadband FAQs : Need-to-know information made simple.
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What is ‘triple-play’?▲
A triple-play deal is one in which your phone, TV and broadband connection are all bundled together in one subscription. The advantages of having a triple-play bundle are that you only pay one bill a month, and (in theory) you have a single point of contact to resolve any problems. The best triple-play services provide customer support 24/7 and if you have to hold, wait times are rarely very long.
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Can I keep my old router?▲
The short answer is: it depends. Most internet providers own the router so when you upgrade or switch to a different ISP they will ask you to return it.
If you’ve bought your own router, and it’s compatible with the broadband you’re buying, no problem.
But if you didn’t buy it, it belongs to your previous internet provider.
If it is fairly old technology it’s less likely they’ll bother asking for it back. Still, if you’re upgrading to fibre broadband, your old router may not work anyway.
It’s worth remembering to read the letter you receive with your new router. They may still demand it back and include the shipping labels required.
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Why can’t I get (Sky, TalkTalk, BT) in my postcode?▲
Broadband providers that build their own networks, like Virgin Media and Hull’s KCOM, can only cover postcodes that their cables can reach.
If they have no physical way to connect to you, they cannot provide you with an internet service.
Most other Internet Service Providers (ISPs) use the same infrastructure – the BT Openreach network.
This is a very old network and it is made up of copper telephone lines and faster fibre cables. Telephone lines cover almost everywhere in the UK but the coverage of fibre broadband cables is limited.
ISPs have to rent space on the Openreach network before they can sell a service to customers. Some ISPs rent space that covers the whole country, while others may choose to only cover specific areas.
This is why different ISPs and broadband speeds are available in different locations.
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Why are broadband speeds listed as ‘average’?▲
Broadband speed advertising changed in May 2018. Providers are now required to quote the average speed available to customers on the package. That speed must be available to at least 50% of customers.
The truth is, the speed you can get depends on more than just the connection the ISP has sold you.
The maximum speed possible for your broadband depends on where you live and how many other people are sharing the connection, which can slow down in the post-work ‘rush hour’, or first thing in the morning. A connection can only be as fast as its slowest point.
Connecting to a server involves communicating over a long network made up of lots of different parts – your broadband line is just one part of this long connection.
Even if you’re on an incredibly fast 1000Mbps broadband connection, accessing to a server that can only handle 10Mbps means you won’t see more than 10Mbps.
ISPs often can’t guarantee the speed you’ll get until you’re actually connected, so their speeds are listed as the average value instead.
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What kind of broadband is ‘up to 17Mbps?’▲
The speeds listed on broadband deals are an easy way to identify the type of technology used to connect you to the internet.
‘Up to 17Mbps’ is another way of saying ‘this is an ADSL connection’. ADSL broadband – which came out in 2000 – uses copper telephone lines and telephone exchanges to deliver a broadband service.
ADSL is the slowest but least expensive type of broadband available today.
Though affordable, connection quality suffers very badly from interference. If your connection is crowded with other users or there is a long distance to the closest exchange, the speed of ADSL broadband will dramatically decrease.
If you aren’t covered by fibre or cable providers, ADSL is likely your only option for fixed-line broadband.
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What does ‘upload speed’ mean?▲
Your upload speed is how much data your connection can send at any one time. While your computer will constantly send small amounts of data to websites and servers, your upload speed will only really come into play if you’re trying to publish files online.
Putting a video on YouTube or a photo on Facebook will require you to upload your files, so a faster upload speed will make this happen quicker.
Unless you spend a lot of time uploading files, you probably aren’t going to get a lot of use out of a high upload speed connection.
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How fast is ‘ultrafast’ broadband?▼
Ultrafast broadband is a term that describes broadband speeds between 100Mbps and 500Mbps. The only UK-wide ISP that falls into this category is Virgin Media.
Unlike other ISPs, Virgin Media uses its own unique cable network to connect customers to the internet.
This network is much faster than the Openreach network that most other ISPs use.
According to Ofcom, ‘ultrafast’ defines speeds between 300Mbps and 1000Mbps. This margin is far too wide for any real-world use as a 300Mbps connection is significantly different from a 1000Mbps connection in terms of network technology.
Instead, ‘ultrafast’ is used to describe Virgin’s cable network speeds. ‘Hyperfast’ is reserved for full-fibre speeds of 1Gbps or more – also known as gigabit broadband.
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What kind of broadband is ‘up to 38Mbps?’▼
‘Up to 38Mbps’ is a term that describes the slower type of fibre broadband, also known as FTTC (Fibre to the Cabinet).
FTTC uses copper telephone lines to connect you to a green street cabinet near your home before handing the connection over to fibre optic cables.
Although the maximum speed is ‘up to 38Mbps’ you are unlikely to get download speeds as fast as this in everyday use. The quality of an individual connection can vary between customers depending on the distance between your home and the nearest street cabinet, as well as how crowded your cabinet is with other users.
‘Up to 38Mbps’ broadband is a significant improvement over ‘up to 17Mbps’ broadband because of the massively increased stability of fibre optic lines. This means you’ll have much more reliable broadband, especially during peak times.
