Is 10Gb Networking Coming to the Southern Highlands? What It Is and Whether You Need It

You might have heard the term "10 gigabit" or "10Gb" networking starting to come up in conversations about home networks and technology upgrades. It sounds like marketing speak — another number that's ten times bigger than the last one. But there's actually something worth understanding here, particularly if you're building or upgrading a network in the Southern Highlands right now.

Here's what 10Gb networking actually is, where it makes sense, and whether it should factor into your plans.

A quick sense of scale

Most home networks today run on 1 gigabit (1Gb) connections between devices — between your router and your switch, between your switch and your access points, and so on. That's the internal speed of your network, not your internet speed. Your Starlink might deliver 200–300 Mbps from the outside world, but internally your devices are communicating at up to 1,000 Mbps (1Gb).

10Gb is simply ten times faster than that — 10,000 Mbps — on the internal cables and switches of your network.

Why does internal network speed matter?

For most things people do on a home network — browsing the web, streaming video, video calls — your current internal network is already more than fast enough. The bottleneck is almost always your internet connection, not the speed between your devices.

But there are scenarios where internal speed starts to matter:

• Large file transfers between devices. If you're regularly moving large video files, photo libraries, or backups between a computer and a NAS (network storage) device, 10Gb makes this dramatically faster.
• Security cameras at high resolution. A property with multiple 4K cameras streaming simultaneously generates a lot of data. 10Gb backbone connections handle this more comfortably than 1Gb.
• Future internet speeds. Internet connections are getting faster. If 1Gb internet plans become common in the Highlands in the next few years, a 1Gb internal network becomes the bottleneck. A 10Gb internal network means you're ready.
• Multiple heavy users simultaneously. A busy home office, a studio, or a property with multiple power users all competing for bandwidth benefits from a faster internal network.

Is 10Gb internet coming to the Southern Highlands?

For most of the Southern Highlands, the most realistic path to fast internet right now is Starlink, which typically delivers 150–300 Mbps — well within what a 1Gb internal network can handle. True 10Gb internet to homes is still years away for most of regional NSW.

So 10Gb at the internet connection level isn't something to plan for just yet. But 10Gb on the internal backbone of a well-designed network — between your switch and your NAS, your server room, or your main access points — is already relevant for some properties, and is worth considering when installing new cabling.

Should you plan for it now?

If you're running new ethernet cable during a renovation or new build, the answer is almost certainly yes — at least on the key runs. Cat6A cabling (which supports 10Gb) costs only marginally more than standard Cat6, and cable is almost always the hardest and most expensive thing to replace later. Running the right cable now means you can upgrade to 10Gb switches and devices in the future without touching your walls.

If you're not doing any cabling work, 10Gb probably isn't worth specifically upgrading for unless you have a clear use case — large file transfers, a high-camera-count security system, or a serious home office setup.