MOUNT Gambier’s transition to the National Broadband Network remains ahead of the state average, with over 10,000 properties now connected to the government-owned infrastructure.
Around two years after the initial roll out started, 66pc of Blue Lake city clients are now connected to the network, compared to around 50pc of users statewide.
NBN spokesperson Tim Saul said wireless towers stationed around the district enabled faster connections for residents in outlying areas.
“Our research tells us that by 2020 the average Australian home will have around 30 devices connected to their internet,” Mr Saul said.
“Almost every off-the-shelf device can now be connected to the home internet.
“More and more people were saying they connect things such as security systems, watering systems and more to their internet, which means connectivity is going beyond the desktop computer, television and
the mobile phone.”
Claiming the NBN had made a “significant difference” to previous internet capabilities, Mr Saul said the network was now three to four times faster than its predecessors.
“It is just about providing a more reliable connection as well,” he said.
“People can now be doing their school homework while someone is streaming Netflix and someone else is working from home in another room and uploading large files to the cloud.
“It can all happen with minimum impact.”
While the national roll out has not been without its challenges, including across the Limestone Coast, Mr Saul said many issues came down to specific plans.
“Some people within the region were not sure of the plans they were initially on,” he said.
“They saw the cheapest price and went with that without really knowing what it meant.”
Mr Saul said residents should approach providers with questions and queries surrounding internet speed, urging consumers to understand their plan.
“Within the City of Mount Gambier there is always going to be some connection issues,” he said.
“People did not realise at the time they had multiple internet speed options and would opt out for the lowest price, ultimately resulting in the lower speed.”
Green Triangle Electronics sales consultant Adrian Mott said frustrations grew early in the NBN roll out with cheap packages carrying the lowest speed tier.
“This caused a lot of confusion among customers,” Mr Mott said.
“People were not seeing any improvements in speed, but spending a little bit extra to get up to the fastest speed they then got a dramatic increase in connectivity.”
Mr Mott said initial feedback from the community surrounding NBN connectivity had been positive.
“If there are concerns around the internet speed at any residential area or business they should not be silent about it,” Mr Mott said.
“If it is not performing as well as it should we do encourage people to come and speak to their service providers or to come and see a specialist such as ourselves because we can investigate for them.”
