Want a quick visual on how Minnesota broadband speeds compare to other states? Ookla has a color-coded map tracking average Internet speeds by congressional district…

First striking point – both North and South Dakota are beating us.

Their general remarks…

Perhaps not surprisingly, big cities and more urban areas are more likely to benefit from faster download speeds, while rural communities are more likely to see that little buffering icon spin around constantly.

We see that in Minnesota through the Connect Minnesota maps. Earlier this week the MN Broadband Task Force was debating how much of Minnesota has access to broadband based on whether you include mobile wireless access or not. The numbers don’t sound bad – but when you look at a map you can see there’s a great discrepancy between urban and rural areas…