Virgin Media reveals ultra-fast ‘gigabit broadband’ that downloads 4K movies ‘in three minutes’
VIRGIN Media has vowed to bring ultra-fast "next-gen" broadband to its entire network by the end of 2021.
This means nearly 15million homes across the UK will get access to gigabit internet speeds – capable of downloading 4K movies in minutes.
The upgrade won't mean any drilling or pulling up street cables: Virgin Media is simply upgrading software and providing a new router.
However, Virgin Media hasn't confirmed exactly which areas of the country will be prioritised first.
"We'll kick off city-by-city: we plan to have at least two cities this year. One is Southampton and the other is up for discussion," said Virgin Media's Jeff Dodds, speaking to The Sun.
Dodds told us that the upgrading process will be "seamless" for customers.
"The minute we release that speed in your area, if you wish to upgrade to that speed, it's the same as any other process: a telephone call or through the My Virgin app," he said.
You'll need to upgrade to a brand new router however – even if you already have the latest SuperHub 3.
Virgin Media wouldn't reveal pricing to The Sun, telling us that it "hasn't decided yet".
But Dodds said that upgrading its network is "not particularly" costly.
Gigabit speeds relate to the amount of data your internet can download over a period of time.
The minimum speed to qualify is 1Gbps (gigabit per second), but Virgin Media said trials in Southampton are already hitting 1.5Gbps for some customers.
Ofcom's Sharon White said: "We welcome Virgin Media's commitment to investing further in its network, providing gigabit speeds to millions more households.
"This shows the race to roll out ultrafast speeds to people and businesses across the UK is really gathering pace."
The bad news is that Virgin Media's promise of gigabit speeds won't necessarily translate to real-world performance.
If you're connecting devices to the internet over WiFi, you could lose a significant chunk of download speed.
That's because WiFi speed can be affected factors like distance from router, the size of your home, the materials your house is built from and more.
Importantly, Virgin Media's promise of gigabit speeds only covers the speed delivered to your router.
To get higher speeds, try connecting your gadgets – like a TV or games console – to the router directly, using an ethernet cable.
Gigabit speeds – what does it mean, and how fast will it be?
Here's what Virgin Media is promising...
With Virgin Media’s hyperfast gigabit connection, ultra-high definition 4K films and TV programmes, very large files and 360 degree videos can be downloaded almost instantaneously, even with multiple devices using the connection simultaneously.
The connection is almost 20 times faster than the UK average broadband connection meaning that users can, for example:
- Download a high definition (HD) film (5GB) in just 42 seconds, compared to more than 13 minutes on the UK’s average connection.
- Download an Ultra High Definition 4K film (20GB) in less than 3 minutes, compared to nearly an hour (52 minutes) on the UK’s average connection.
- Download a chart-topping PlayStation 4 game, for example FIFA 18 (45GB), in just six and a half minutes, compared to nearly 2 hours on the UK’s average connection.
The move is seen by some experts at a chance to combat 5G mobile networks – which also promise nippy gigabit speeds.
"Everyone is jumping on the bandwagon in the race to deploy fibre broadband at scale," said Paolo Pescatore, a media analyst at PP Foresight, speaking to The Sun.
"The early moves to offer 5G has undoubtedly brought forward plans for many providers to upgrade home broadband services towards gigabit connections.
"For Virgin Media, it represents a key step in future proofing its cable network infrastructure.
"Arguably, this move should have come sooner but will bring about plentiful benefits to Virgin Media customers for potentially a few quid more."
But Virgin Media denied that it was trying to get a leg up over 5G.
"5G and fixed broadband are very different things," Dodds explained.
"We're fully supportive of 5G, but 5G is mobile data and mobile data is designed to work best when you're on the move.
"Average data consumption on a typical mobile plan is about 2.9GB per month. Typical consumption on fixed broadband is 240GB per month."
Virgin Media said full details on availability and pricing for gigabit broadband will be announced in the coming months.
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Customers can already get a free WiFi upgrade that speeds up internet around the home.
And late last year, rival BT unveiled a Complete WiFi "disc" that makes your internet 25% faster – and it only costs a fiver.
If you're more interested in speedy mobile internet, check out our round-up of the 5G phones available in the UK today.
Are you a Virgin Media customer? Are you happy with your service? Let us know in the comments!
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