Suburbs with the best and worst broadband in Australia

A new analysis has revealed the best and worst broadband towns across Australia. Finder.com.au published a list of Australia’s best broadband hotspots identified by the number of homes in one suburb that had the fastest NBN connections, and the worst connected suburbs that could only obtain the minimum speed guarantee of 25 megabits per second.

According to Finder technology expert Nick Broughall, there are a number of factors that determine how fast the internet could be assessed. These include the type of National Broadband Network connection in a specific area, the number of homes connected to broadband at once and the state of existing infrastructure.

“Our research showed surprising results, with the odd premise in the heart of capital cities getting switched to satellite NBN, such as Botany Bay and St Ives in Sydney, Docklands in Melbourne, and Bowen Hills in Brisbane,” The Courier Mail quotes Broughall as saying. He added it was often suburbs in the outer city that have switched to satellite primarily because of population and housing density.

Some of the best broadband hotspots in Australia were found near major cities. These include Mill Park in Victoria, Blacktown in New South Wales and Glenorchy in Tasmania. Meanwhile, the worst broadband areas were dominated by Victoria.

Here are the best connected suburbs in Australia: Glenorchy TAS, Mill Park VIC, Blacktown NSW, Tullamarine VIC, Brunswick VIC, Para Hills SA, Auburn NSW, Lidcombe NSW, Boondall QLD, Blackmans Bay TAS, Runcorn QLD, Taigum QLD, Aldinga Beach SA, West Hobart TAS and Seaford Rise SA. The list is based on the highest number of FTTP connections in suburbs in capital cities.

The worst connected suburbs in Australia, according to Finder, are: Werribee VIC, Bullsbrook WA, Kholo QLD, Diamond Creek VIC, Strathewen VIC, The Basin VIC, Harkaway VIC, Glenorie NSW, Martin WA, Canoelands NSW, Truganina VIC, Maroota NSW, Mulgoa NSW, Lysterfield VIC and Kenthurst NSW. The list is based on the number of premises that receive NBN via satellite regardless of capital city proximity.

Nicholas Demos, MyRepublic Australia managing director, said that the gap between internet haves and have-nots was “unfair.” He pointed out that Aussies are increasingly in need of fast connection to meet their entertainment and business demands. “It’s not fair that some people get 25 megabits per second and some others get 1000."

Demos added that households in the best areas are currently being offered only 100 megabit per second. It can be compared to Singapore and New Zealand, which could access gigabit-per-second speeds.

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