What is fibre broadband?
How does fibre optic broadband connect to my house?
There are three main types of broadband that link the local exchange to your house:
- ADSL (asymmetric digital subscriber line), using copper cables to a street cabinet and then more copper to your house
- FTTC (fibre to the cabinet), using fibre cables to a street cabinet but then copper cables to your house
- FTTH (fibre to the home), using only fibre cables to your house
Copper has been the backbone of the internet for many years, it’s used across the UK and goes into most homes, but it is old and slow.
Fibre optic cables are made from glass and use pulses of light to transmit data at much higher speeds. So, the more fibre used in a network, the higher the speed.
A fibre only connection, like our FTTH service, delivers the highest speeds, symmetrically into homes.
Your Wi-Fi router explained
Your hyperfast fibre broadband needs to reach all your devices and users, wherever they are in your home. Fundamental to that is your Wi-Fi and to maximise Wi-Fi performance we work with Zyxel, a market leader in Wi-Fi technology.
The Zyxel VMG8825-T50 gigabit internet access device provides high performance and flexibility for full fibre to the home broadband consumers.
With built-in 4×4 802.11ac WLAN function it offers great coverage and Wi-Fi user experience, with features including:
- VDSL2 supporting super vectoring up to profile 35b.
- AC2400, dual-band Wi-Fi with 802.11ac 4×4 Wave 2 technology.
- Supports VoIP SIP protocol with 3-way conference calls.
- USB 3.0 high throughput for file sharing.
- Excellent routing and QoS capability to prioritise applications.
- NAT, firewall with SPI and DoS for better security.
- Stand-alone and wall mountable.
Core hardware features:
- WAN: One 10/100/1000 Mbps Ethernet port RJ-45
- DSL: One RJ-11
- Ethernet: Four 10/100/1000 Mbps ports RJ-45 (8P8C)
- Wireless: Three internal antennas (2.4 GHz) and four internal antennas (5 GHz)
- VoIP: 2 FXS ports
- USB: One USB 3.0 host and One USB 2.0 port
Digital Home & IP address allocation explained
Digital Home runs a modern fibre to the home network which supports hyperfast broadband. As we move to IPv6 addressing next year, that is metaverse orientated, cloud first digital services, some things will be left behind. As a result, Digital Home does not provide publicly available IP addresses for any specific subscriber or connection.
This means that if you are running home network servers that depend upon port forwarding and static IP address routing requirements, our network is not right for you.
There are providers out there who may provide this to you as a business or premium service option.
There are ways to “enhance” your home network with cloud based server options using VPN’s which will work over our network. As the world migrates to IPv6 this is the likely future, so join us there and enjoy our speed and great service.
The following are example companies you could try, who provide such related services:
Please note: These are not recommendations, nor do we receive payment for referencing these suppliers.
How fast is fibre broadband?
Wondering how long it takes on our hyperfast broadband vs what you currently experience? No problem – take a look.
| Activity | Assumed file size | Digital Home up to 900 Mbps broadband | UK average broadband |
|---|---|---|---|
| Time to download an HD TV show | 450MB | 8 seconds | 56 seconds |
| Time to download an HD movie | 4GB | 72 seconds | 500 seconds |
| Time to download a video game | 50GB | 888 seconds | 6,240 seconds |
UK average download 64Mbps (Ofcom May 2020).
Digital Home download 450Mbps.
The times shown above have been calculated using the estimated file size associated with each activity but the actual speeds you experience may vary based on several factors, including but not limited to traffic on your current network and the strength of your Wi-Fi connection.
Broadband speeds explained
We provide broadband speeds of up to 900 Mbps symmetrically to every home, but let’s talk honestly about the most important thing – the speed you actually experience on your devices.
That speed depends on several things but mainly on how your devices are connected to your broadband service.
We would expect a wired device, that has the specification to cope with 900 Mbps, using the correct cables, to experience speeds of between 500 & 600 Mbps, depending on device locations.
Wi-Fi performance however is susceptible to real life variables including the construction materials of your home, your everyday home items, your PC and your neighbours!
Get the home fibre broadband speed you need
That starts at the beginning, from the location of your home fibre entry, to where best to position your Wi-Fi router, to our expanding portfolio of in-home network solutions.
For more information on the broadband speed you will experience and real-life issues to be aware of:
Click here
Fibre to the Home FAQs
Want to understand more about the technology involved in fibre broadband? We hope the above has helped. But, in case you’re looking for more answers, below are some of our most commonly asked questions. Don’t forget you can always contact us should you have any queries you need more information on. Like more information on:
Not every home is currently capable of receiving fibre broadband. This is because the technology the fibre is being rolled out over the next few years across the country and may not have reached your area yet. If you’re interested in hyperfast broadband from Digital Home use our postcode checker to see if we can connect your home. Our network is constantly growing so make sure to check back if we don’t currently service your area.
We cannot provide a specific date as to when our hyperfast broadband will be available in your area. You can check where we have service easily and you will be able to register interest for our locations that are coming soon. Over 8 million homes will be able to take fibre in 30 months’ time. Our network is expanding rapidly so bookmark the page to stay up to date.
Fibre broadband purely uses a network of fibre optic cables to deliver broadband, from the exchange to your home. Traditional broadband works with copper cables which aren’t capable of handling high volumes of data. In comparison, fibre optic cables can hold vast quantities of data, giving customers faster broadband speeds and a more reliable internet connection.
You may have heard phrases such as Full Fibre, FTTP, or FTTH when looking for a new broadband provider. All these terms mean the same thing – fibre optic cable from the local exchange all the way to your property. Full fibre uses fibre optic cables only, never relying on copper telephone lines. Digital Home offer full fibre broadband, why not find out where we have service today.
Fibre broadband is becoming more and more available, and the Digital Home network is growing rapidly to over 8 million homes. However, not all properties can receive hyperfast broadband. Get in touch with Digital Home today if you have any questions.
If after using our postcode checker we can connect your home it means the hard work has already been completed and there is fibre in your street. On the day of the appointment the fibre will be taken from the local cabinet directly into your home.
Switch broadband easily with Digital Home. You will receive a brand new router from us, for free. It will be a Zyxel router, a company who are a market leader in Wi-Fi technology. It offers great coverage and Wi-Fi user experience and can cope with gigabit speed.
