While there's much talk of the opportunities that the NBN will bring, there's also a warning and a call for a reality check.

Farmers are facing a 'digital divide' and are being hamstrung by their internet speeds.

Participants of the Digital Rural Futures conference in Armidale in northern NSW have been discussing the challenges and opportunities facing farming as it enters the digital age, and it comes as no surprise that high speed internet is integral to people in rural and regional Australia being able to optimise those opportunities.

Joe Dennis from NBN Co, the company responsible for rolling out the National Broadband Network, says farmers are being hamstrung by their internet speeds.

"The NBN is made up of three networks: The fibre network for towns; the fixed wireless network for the perimeters of towns and the smaller villages; and the new satellite network for the farms and the very small villages out in regional and rural Australia," said Mr Dennis.

"The majority of Australian farmers are on one or two megabits per second (Mbps) and they're limited in what they can do. Once we get to that universal 25 Mbps on the NBN infrastructure, you're going to see a proliferation of uptake of sensors and cloud software and a variety of other technologies."

But President of NSW Farmers' Association Fiona Simson says while the talk of widespread connectivity is encouraging, it's time for a reality check.

"We need to understand what's possible but also what's currently there and the barriers to the uptake of this sort of technology," said Ms Simson.

"Forty percent of our members don't have reliable mobile phone coverage, let alone the related computer infrastructure that enables them to have fast download speeds."

While access to cyber space is one thing, knowing how to use it is another.

Professor Mike Keppell from the Digital Futures Institute at the University of Southern Queensland admits there is a digital divide in regional communities.

"There's the haves and the have-nots in terms of skill level. Those that have digital literacy have the skills and are empowered. Those who don't have the skills, really have some difficulty with getting on top of some of the different aspects they need to with technology."

Paul Greenberg from the National Online Retailers Association says there are many people in rural and regional communities who are utilising the digital realm to their economic advantage. He calls it 'connected commerce' and claims the tyranny of distance is being replaced by the power of proximity.

"It's changing so quickly. The general consensus is that in the 'new retail' there will be more change in the next five years than there has been in the last 50 years."