We've all experienced it: the frustration of having to wait what seems like hours for a large file to download or a video to begin playing. But thanks to some clever boffins, such waits may soon be over.

The boffins in question have been hard at work inside the well-equipped research labs at computer giant IBM. Their goal has been to find a way to shift data around more quickly. The result, is the Holey Optochip.

According to IBM, this golden wonder contains 24 optical receiver units, allowing it to send and receive massive amounts of data in the form of light pulses. While this has been done before, it's the rate at which it happens that sets this chip apart.

The Holey Optochip, currently in prototype form, is up to eight times faster than any optical chip currently available. It is capable of transferring one terabit (that's a trillion bits) every second.

While it won't find its way into your office network anytime soon, it will eventually become part of the public internet, significantly improving data links and reducing frustrating delays.

So, as you ponder the week ahead of you, just think how much faster you could get all that work done if you didn't have to wait for data. You might even get home on time.