Millions of BT and Sky users finally offered ultimate upgrade - check your postcode now
Millions of BT and Sky customers are in for a treat as they're now eligible for the ultimate broadband upgrade- and you can check your postcode.
Openreach, the infrastructure arm of BT, has announced that close to 14 million properties across the UK can now tap into ultrafast Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) internet. This leap in connectivity means users can enjoy lightning-fast downloads and seamless streaming like never before. Openreach also has ambitious plans to extend this service to 30 million homes and businesses by the end of the decade.
"We've built full fibre broadband to almost 14 million premises and are now building at a rate of 1m a quarter and will go on to reach 30m by 2030," Openreach's Director of Fibre Build, Georgia Grimes, confirmed in a statement to ISPreview. "We're building on time, in budget, safely and sustainably."
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Although Openreach is a subsidiary of BT, its network is crucial for other providers such as Sky, TalkTalk, and EE, meaning this upgrade could benefit millions more customers, reports the Express.
To put things into perspective, the old copper wire connections offer speeds up to 80Mbps, but with FTTP, speeds can soar to over 1.5Gbps that's an eye-watering 15 times faster.
With full-fibre, downloading a full HD film could take as little as 30 seconds, and households with multiple users gaming, streaming, or working from home will notice a significant improvement, as FTTP can handle numerous devices online simultaneously.
Openreach offers a dedicated Fibre broadband speed checker, allowing you to see the speeds available in your area. Check here.
It's important to note that the faster the speeds you opt for, the higher the cost. If you don't require lightning-fast 1Gbps downloads, it's worth shopping around and choosing a plan that suits your daily needs.
For a single user who only needs to send a few emails and occasionally stream shows on Netflix, a 30Mbps connection should suffice. While this is a basic speed, it should be more than enough for low usage properties.
On the other hand, a household filled with gadgets and people streaming in 4K, downloading games, and making Zoom calls will require a much faster connection.
A busy family wanting to avoid a slow connection should consider upgrading to at least 200Mbps or faster. Remember, broadband is like a motorway - the more traffic there is, the slower things get.