PROJECT UPDATES
Lloyd’s Dairy Barn on Hwy 70 in Efland has been completed. During the weekend of October 17 &18, The Barn hosted the Tarheel Antique Festival and was able to provide high speed Internet over public Wi-Fi to the vendors and guests .
The Lloyd’s Dairy Barn will provide coverage to the southern area of Brookhollow Rd and points east and south of that and also along Hwy 70 heading west. We expect to be installing customers in the upcoming weeks.
Cedar Grove Farms: We are beginning the installation of equipment on the silo and our backhaul link to the North Hillsborough Water Tank to bring signal and bandwidth over to distribute out the the area homes. Tower climbers are being scheduled for that as well in November. The Cedar Grove Farms location will give us additional coverage in the lower Lake Orange area and in the area of Governor Scott Rd. The northern part of the Lake will begin after the Cedar Grove silo is completed and will cover the western and eastern side of the peninsula.
Schley Tower : Unfortunately we’ve had numerous delays with this site. We and are just now in the process of scheduling tower climbers and beginning the installation of our broadcast antennas. Shortly thereafter we will begin surveying homes in the area.
Service Installations are marked on this map. Note the pins south of 40, as well as a few outlying points north of 40 have been completed with our new cellular data service option while waiting for fixed-wireless.
A MicroPop can take a source signal and distribute a fixed wireless signal to a surrounding area to provide connectivity to neighbors who would otherwise not be able to obtain a signal.
We have connected homes in a number of areas with our newly introduced Cellular High Speed 4G LTE data service.
Many residents have contacted us to sign up for this cellular service while they are waiting for our Fixed Wireless service to be implemented in their area. We have had a strong response for this service and we continuing to survey and will be contacting those that have inquired to schedule a date to be tested.
You can get on out list by calling (980) 246-8989 or info@openbb.net.
For our prospective customers that we are not able to provide fixed wireless coverage to at the current time, Open Broadband is offering a 4G LTE cellular based technology that offers High Speed Internet with 400 GB of data usage. Speeds vary from 15 Mbps to over 50 Mbps
Features and Benefits
- No contract, No credit check, No additional taxes or fees
- 400 GB per month and No throttling*
- Fixed monthly fee
- Uses the same online billing platform as our fixed-wireless service. No overage fees.
- Connect up to 10 wireless connections at a time and use the LAN port for hard wired connections.
- Supported by Open Broadband’s 24×7 Technical Support
- Cancel at any time
- Once fixed-wireless is available you will be able to switch between the plans
This system is similar to what our fixed wireless system offers but is provided through a cellular connection from towers that are within your vicinity. The equipment is comprised of a wireless router connected to an exterior mounted directional antenna** for optimum throughput. Installation is similar to that of our fixed-wireless service, and you will continue to be supported by our 24×7 call center in North Carolina.
Unlike our fixed-wireless service, the system is portable, so you can take it with you anywhere you can obtain a cellular signal.
PRICING
Monthly Fee – $149.99
Installation – $135.00 (one time fee)
Cancel anytime, no contract
* Once you use 200 GB you may experience reduced speeds
** The Yagi antenna is not required for stationary or portable use.but is recommended for best signal strength
You will be contacted once fixed-wireless service is available
Once service is available at your address, we will contact you to schedule a signal test to ensure sufficient wireless signal for broadband.
Once the signal level is confirmed we’ll set up an in-home installation appointment. A team of installers will set up the system, attaching an antenna to the exterior of your house in addition to an interior gateway device.
If we have not contacted you that means service is not available yet. Please be patient and we will contact you when we can schedule your address. We will provide as much advance notice as possible.
If your neighbors have not joined the signup list, encourage them to do so.
We’ve expanded our Team
We’re pleased to welcome Jeff Loyd and Shannon Marengo to our team. Jeff is our Network Deployment Manager who will oversee large project implementations, broadcast antenna installations and overall network sites. Shannon is our Office Manager who fields email and phone call inquiries for service and other related questions, and also assists in scheduling site surveys and installations.
As we continue to sign up more customers and expand our coverage, we will further expand our Team and interview candidates for Part Time / Full Time positions of surveyors and installers.
Interested candidates can view our job postings and apply via our website careers page: https://careers.openbb.net/
A big Thank You to all of our customers in Orange County! This is a long journey to build a new network from scratch, using fixed-wireless technology in a challenging terrain. We believe everyone deserves access to broadband speeds and our small company is doing our part to fill in gaps where the 50-100 year old large companies have not implemented.
Thank you for your patience and support, while we continue to develop solutions to provide High Speed Broadband to your area and we look forward to serving many more of you throughout the year.
A Reminder Message from Open Broadband concerning COVID-19
Staying connected even when apart
COVID-19 has brought many changes to our communities, affecting the ways we live, work and interact. But throughout these changes, one thing has stayed constant: Our determination to serve you and your internet needs in a safe manner.
Working in your community
As one of the many essential services responding to this national emergency, our work continues – even in those areas with stay-at-home ordinances. You may still see some of our field technicians working in and around your neighborhood. Their work is helping to ensure that residential communities, businesses and critical facilities have the internet they need throughout this time.
As a precaution, if you do see our workers, please avoid approaching them and their work areas. If there is a need to speak with them, be aware that they will be maintaining at least 6 feet of separation. We’ll also be keeping this recommended distance anytime direct interaction for essential services is required on customer properties, inside homes and businesses, consistent with CDC and other public health guidelines.
