battery low

Power outages.

We have somewhat unreliable power on the bay islands and as a business owner, I have put in measures to keep my business, IT Solver operational regardless of mains power availability. Protect your desktop computer and modem from mains power failures with an Uninterruptible Power Supply or UPS, available at Officeworks from $119. Your access to cute cat videos will be uninterrupted if the modem is connected to a UPS. Mobile towers and ADSL exchange have about 48 hours of backup power provided by a generator before the diesel runs out.

ADSL ports available for Macleay and Lamb Is.

UPDATE (8 May, 2015): Good news, there is now plenty of ADSL ports for all Southern Moreton Bay Islands.

If you’re on Macleay or Lamb Island and want to apply for ADSL, you will be pleased to know there are now 144 ports available.  Unfortunately, Karragarra and Russell Island residents are still waiting (despite recent activity) for increased capacity to the exchange at 63 High Street, Russell Island.

Tip: Before a thunderstorm, unplug your computer and modem from mains power and phone line to prevent damage by lightning surge.

Mobile broadband - test before sign up

For people who are too far away from the ADSL exchange, mobile broadband is your next best option for getting connected, and sadly not all parts of the islands have good coverage with old school satellite internet the only option. Depending on your line of sight to the mobile tower and your building type (as metal frames block signal), you may get better speeds with Telstra or Optus.

Before signing the contract, you may want to see how many signal bars you get with a mobile phone on the same carrier.  Even better, use a smart phone in your home or office to test download speeds.  The Optus network is resold to Amaysim, iiNet, Virgin Mobile and Dodo. Conversely, the Telstra 3G network is resold by Aldimobile and Boost, however Telstra keep their 4G (or LTE) for Telstra customers only.

Many parts of the islands need an external antenna connected to the modem for more consistent mobile broadband data speeds. Contact IT Solver for more info.