Everything You Wanted To Know About Broadband But Were Afraid To Ask

It is impossible to sit through an advert break during your favourite television programme these days without seeing at least one advertisement for broadband services. You cannot even escape references to broadband in the news media, with the government recently announcing plans to get 90 percent of homes and businesses in the UK connected to super-fast broadband by 2015 and many communities in rural areas that telecom companies such as BT and Virgin Media will not be installing fibre optic cabling declaring their intent to fund their own network upgrades.

So what is all the fuss about? Broadband is defined as a 'high bandwidth' internet connection, meaning that data can be sent and downloaded at a faster rate than a dial up connection using a modem and telephone line. There are also more options for receiving broadband than dial-up, with service providers able to set up the connection over a phone line, through copper or fibre optic cables or via satellite. Through a broadband connection you can perform multiple online tasks at once, such as stream a video while downloading an album by your favourite band, without effecting the strength or quality of the connection.

Some of the benefits of having a broadband connection include the payment plans that service providers charge. Those with dial-up connections are often charged by how much time they spend online. This is not the case with broadband as you pay a fixed monthly fee that includes line rental and your download allowance. If you go over your allowance, you will not be able to stream or download anymore data until that payment period is over.

With broadband, there is no need to connect to the internet. A broadband connection is always on and ready to use and does not tie up your phone line, meaning that you can surf the web and use your telephone at the same time, very handy if you ever have a technical issue with your computer or internet connection and need to speak to a customer service or technical support representative.

The major benefit of a broadband connection is the speed at which you can navigate the internet. Websites open and display their content faster, videos can be loaded and viewed in seconds and services like digital radio and 'catch-up' television streaming (the BBC's iPlayer and Channel 4's 4OD, for example) that operate in real time can be accessed and enjoyed.

With BT and Virgin rolling out improved fibre optic broadband networks around the country, getting signed up to a broadband deal in the next few years could be a wise move.