The arrival of high speed broadband across the Minch is hailed as a "seismic shift in communications" for some of the most remote communities, heralding a new connected age for the Outer Isles.

Around 3,600 premises in Stornoway will be the first to have access to the new services thanks to the Digital Scotland Superfast Broadband project.

Customers connected to the network through the first 11 live street cabinets across the town and in the nearby community of Tong can order now, or very soon, as services become available through internet service providers.

When connected they could have direct access to download speeds of up to 80mbps.

It's the first step in a £146m region wide roll-out which will see the majority, at least 70 per cent of premises across the Outer Hebrides better connected by the end of 2016.

Much of the rest of Lewis, Harris, the Uists, Barra and Vatersay are scheduled for connection next year.

The project is being led Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE), with work on the ground being carried out by Openreach, the local network division of BT. Funding is coming from the Scottish Government and the UK Government as well as HIE and BT.

Deputy First Minister, John Swinney, commented: "This is a momentous day and a huge first step in transforming the future of connectivity for communities and businesses across the Outer Hebrides."