The BBC reports that UK’s telecom service provider, Virgin Media had conducted trials to verify feasibility of offering 8 Gbps symmetrical speeds at eight homes. The trial was conducted in the village of Papworth, Cambridgeshire. The provider hopes to extend this speeds to 50 more over time.
Virgin Media used EPON technology (Ethernet PON) to transmit 8 Gbps downstream and upstream speeds. And that is what the ‘Symmetry’ means – having the same download and upload speeds. You might have experienced the difference in the speeds when you download and try to upload files. Symmetrical speeds offer same speeds both ways.
What you can expect out of 8 Gbps Broadband Connection at your home?
– Download a 5GB file in 5 seconds
– Download 4K movie of 20GB in 20 seconds
– Upload 300 high resolution photos totalling 3GB in three seconds.
Why do you need to upload 3GB in 3 Seconds?
If you want to save all your photos in rented storage space or if you want to upload photos to your blog/site, you will feel the difference.
The number of customers looking for high-speed broadband has been growing and customers’ internet usage is doubling every year. As a provider, Virgin Media needs to ensure that it corresponds to the market demands with the right solutions. The trials like this will ensure and convince Virgin Media’s customers that their provider has the capability to meet the demand of data-hungry services in the future.
Virgin Media’s network in the UK currently passes more than 14 million premises, using a combination of copper cables and fiber optic cables. This is known as homepass. FTTH Council has defined the difference between homepass and home connect. Home-Pass is like the operator is ready to serve the subscriber at any time. Home-connect means the home is already connected with last-mile fiber optic drop cable. The pending work for a home-pass is the last-mile connectivity with fiber optic drop cable. This can be done with an underground cable or aerial drop from the nearest drop closure.
In Online discussion forums in UK, some people used to criticize Virgin Media for the failure to address the digital divide and concentrating its network in more profitable towns and cities, rather than extending it out to more rural areas. For example, Virgin Media in collaboration with Need4Speed started roll out of ultra-fast services to 4,000 premises in the Test Valley, in Hampshire, but has admitted it is unlikely to reach very rural areas.
With 8 Gbps symmetrical speeds, Virgin Media is the front runner. The coming days will show the movements from other providers in the UK.
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