What you need to know about Full-Fibre
When it comes to broadband speeds, the faster the better. Say hello to full-fibre - an upcoming broadband technology that will provide data at speeds approaching one gigabit per second (gbps).
Six areas across the country will soon be trying out this new technology - from West Sussex to Coventry to Manchester. Businesses, schools and hospitals will be the first to try it out with the government spending about £10m to get it up and running.
But what actually is Full-Fibre?
At the moment, fibre services work through cables connected to roadside cabinets, which then have copper cables connected to our homes. Full-fibre sees the cables linked directly to the buildings - boosting the speed up to 1gbps.
Full fibre networks will enable surfing speeds of 1 gigabit, or 1,000 Mb/Sec - that’s sixty times faster than the average broadband speed in the UK. Sounds like a dream, right?
In a press release, the government said this will potentially enable hospitals to share high definition medical scans more quickly, businesses to serve more customers online, and schools to stream a greater number of educational videos online.
What does it mean for internet speeds?
So you know what it is - but let’s figure out what it can actually do. The UK government defines ‘superfast’ as providing download speeds in excess of 24Mpbs - meaning you could stream videos and games a lot quicker than you can over a phone network. Basically, the higher the Mbps (megabits per second), the faster your connection.
The fast-fibre optic cables that run directly into homes and offices provide a more stable, efficient and reliable connection. Plus, they support broadband speeds of up to 1Gbps - enough to download an HD TV programme in 5 seconds, or a full length movie in 8 seconds.
When will it roll out everywhere?
Currently just 2% of households in the UK have access to full-fibre broadband, while the rest of the country lags behind. Minister of state for digital, Matt Hancock, said -
"To keep Britain as the digital world leader that it is, we need to have the right infrastructure in place to allow us to keep up with the rapid advances in technology now and in the future."
The need for full-fibre broadband is growing, and although there’s no defined time for when it’ll roll out across the country, quotes like Matt Hancock’s show it’s on the government's radar for everyone.
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