Three offers 5G home broadband with an average download speed of 150Mbps. Find out how it compares to normal fibre broadband.

In the UK, Three now offers unlimited 5G home broadband in selected postcodes across 580 UK towns and cities.

One of the benefits of Three’s 5G home broadband is that it’s a cheaper option than most fibre broadband services. The average download speed of 150Mbps also holds up well, though the greater variability in download speeds can be frustrating and can be a deal-breaker for some.

As a special offer for Black Friday 2024, you can save £5 per month against the standard price for Three’s 5G home broadband when you order through this link. This makes it just £19 per month (reduced from £24 per month). Alternatively, if you’re looking for flexible short-term home broadband, there’s a one-month rolling plan where you’ll pay £28 per month.

Get 5G Broadband from £19pm →

In this article, we’ll review Three’s 5G home broadband. We’ll start by looking at how it works, and how it compares to normal fibre broadband. We’ll also look at the speeds available, along with the best 5G home broadband deals and the latest 5G Hub router.

Prices From: £19 per month
Contract Length: 1 month or 24 month contract
Download Speed: 150Mbps average
Will vary based on the signal strength & coverage in your area
Router: Three 5G Hub
Coverage: Selected UK postcodes with 5G coverage (check your postcode)

What is Three 5G Home Broadband?

In the UK, Three’s 5G home broadband is an alternative way of getting high-speed broadband internet in your home. Currently available from £19 per month, it offers average download speeds of 150Mbps. This is possible without the need for you to have a landline, or to have a fibre optic connection in your home.

Advantages of 5G Home Broadband

Compared to normal fibre broadband, there are a number of key advantages to getting 5G home broadband:

  • Three’s 5G home broadband is fast and easy to set up. It’s a simple plug-and-play setup process with Three’s 5G home broadband. All you need to do is to plug in the 5G Hub at the wall. You’re then ready to connect to the wi-fi network, to get your devices online. There’s also next working day delivery included for your Hub. In contrast, it can take about 2 weeks to get fibre broadband set up in your home.
  • It’s flexible, so you can bring it elsewhere or you can get a one-month rolling contract. Flexibility is a major feature of Three’s 5G home broadband. For instance, if you’re going away for the weekend, you can simply bring the 5G Hub and your broadband connection will travel with you. It’s also good if you’re planning to move home in the near future, or if you’re living in a shared household (e.g. students or sharers). There’s a one-month rolling contract available at £28 per month, if you’re looking for ultimate flexibility.
  • It’s cheaper than normal fibre broadband, and offers faster download speeds. In general, Three’s 5G home broadband is cheaper than most fibre broadband plans. It also offers faster download speeds on average (albeit, with much more variability).

Disadvantages of 5G Home Broadband

On the other hand, there are some significant disadvantages to 5G home broadband technology as well:

  • The speeds are inconsistent and the service is susceptible to slowdowns. This is the main drawback of Three’s 5G home broadband. During daily use, you’ll see the download speeds varying significantly. This can be for a variety of reasons including the weather, and other people using the service in your area. It’s worth dwelling on this in a lot more detail as this can be a significant drawback, depending on your requirements (see the section below for a more in-depth discussion).
  • Three’s 5G home broadband is only available in selected postcodes. You’ll only be able to get Three’s 5G home broadband is selected postcodes across the UK. This is because Three only offers their 5G home broadband service in areas where they think there is sufficient coverage and network capacity. As such, there are locations where you’re able to get a 5G service on your mobile phone but where you’re unable to get 5G home broadband at present.
  • It’s slower than full fibre (FTTP) broadband. If you’re able to get full fibre (FTTP) broadband in your home, this will be a lot faster and more consistent than 5G home broadband. Full fibre technology is now available in more than 30% of UK homes so this might be a better option if you’re able to get it where you live.

How Does Three’s 5G Home Broadband Work?

To fully appreciate the advantages and the disadvantages of the service, it’s worth understanding how the service works in more detail.

With 5G home broadband, there’s a fibre optic connection from the telephone exchange to your nearest 5G mast (this is known as the ‘backhaul’ connection). From there, a 5G mobile signal is used to deliver the broadband service into your home. As such, the download speeds will vary based on the quality of your 5G mobile signal, as well as the number of other people using the service in your area. That’s because there’s only a finite amount of radio spectrum being shared by users on each mast. In addition, the ‘backhaul’ fibre optic connection is shared with other users on the mast (there’s typically either a 1Gbps or 10Gbps backhaul connection to be shared by all users on one mast).

With regular fibre broadband (also known as fibre-to-the-cabinet, or FTTC broadband), there’s a fibre optic connection from the telephone exchange to a street cabinet near your home. The final part of the connection is delivered over a copper cable, where the speeds will degrade with distance. For instance, it might be possible to get 80Mbps if you live next to the cabinet, but only 40Mbps if you live 500 metres away. In general, your download speeds will be fairly consistent as it’s mainly dependent on the length of the copper line into your home.

Finally, with full fibre broadband (also known as fibre-to-the-premises, or FTTP broadband), there’s a dedicated fibre optic connection all the way from the telephone exchange to your home. As such, you’ll be able to get up to gigabit speeds. This is possible without any slowdown and without the need to share your connection with other users. You’ll therefore get the most consistent speed with this technology.

All of this is summarised in the following table:

Three 5G Broadband Fibre-to-the-cabinet (FTTC) Full Fibre (FTTP)
Average Speed: 150Mbps Up to 80Mbps Up to 1Gbps
Speed varies based on:
  • Coverage
    (e.g. location, weather & hub placement)
  • Other users
    (radio congestion & backhaul)
 Length of copper line No significant factors
Speeds over time: Highly variable speeds Consistent speeds Very consistent speeds
Connection Type: Fibre-to-the-mast
+ 5G wireless		 Fibre-to-the-cabinet
+ copper cable		 Fibre-to-the-premises

Is Three’s 5G Home Broadband Any Good?

The answer is it really depends on your location and how you use your home broadband service.

In terms of pricing and flexibility, Three’s 5G home broadband is fairly difficult to beat. You’re normally going to be paying more than £24 per month to get a fibre broadband service elsewhere, with slower download speeds on average compared to Three’s 5G home broadband.

Download Speeds Can Vary A Lot

The caveat is that you’re getting much more variable speeds on Three’s 5G home broadband, and that might be a problem, depending on your household’s bandwidth requirements.

To illustrate, it’s worth knowing that you’ll need about 5Mbps to stream or video call in HD quality on each device (25Mbps in Ultra HD quality). You’ll need to multiply this up by the number of devices you have. For instance, you’ll need a download speed of 50Mbps if you’re streaming Ultra HD video on two devices at the same time. For a smooth experience, you’ll need to maintain a download speed of at least 50Mbps at all times.

This relates very much to the variable nature of Three’s 5G home broadband. In our own testing, we found download speeds varying from 80Mbps to 500Mbps. In this situation, I’d probably think of it as an 80Mbps connection, with the ‘bonus’ of being able to get faster speeds at certain times. That’s because if you were to actually need more than 80Mbps on an regular basis, there would be quite a lot of frustration from drop-outs and buffering, whenever the speed of your connection drops below 80Mbps.

The following graph shows how the download speeds vary over time on Three’s 5G home broadband:

5G broadband has much more variable speeds, compared to fibre broadband. The key thing is whether the minimum speed meets your requirements.

Reading around, how much of a problem this is really depends on where you live. For instance, customers in some areas report their download speed dropping to 20Mbps at times. This is likely to give you a frustrating experience if you’re streaming anything online. In contrast, other customers say their download speeds rarely drop below 100Mbps.

Of course, how your speeds vary over time will depend on a lot of different factors. This includes where you’re located, the quality of your 5G signal, and the number of other users in your area. For this reason, you really need to try it out for yourself to get a feel of what the speeds are like and whether this meets your requirements. Thankfully, there’s a 30-day money back guarantee available, so you can try it out for yourself without any risk.

Conclusions

In our opinion, Three’s 5G home broadband has really clear benefits if you’re in one of the following groups:

  • If you’re unable to get good speeds through normal fibre broadband. If you’re not able to get good speeds through a fibre broadband connection (or if you’re only able to get copper/ADSL broadband), it’s likely you’ll have a better experience with 5G home broadband.
  • If you’re looking for cheap broadband & are happy to accept some variability in speeds. With Three’s 5G home broadband, you’ll save compared to normal fibre broadband. In addition, the variability in download speeds doesn’t need to be a deal-breaker for everyone – especially if you’re only using a handful of devices at a time.
  • If you’re looking for flexible broadband that’s easy to set up. There are no engineer visits and you can even bring it with you to another location (e.g. on a trip away for the weekend, or if you’re moving home).

In contrast, it’s worth thinking twice if you belong to one of the following groups:

  • If you’re in a busy household with lots of connected devices. In general, you’ll get a far more consistent experience with fibre broadband or full fibre broadband. That’s going to give you a much more dependable experience when you’re streaming online video, working from home, playing games, etc.
  • If you’re in a household with access to full fibre (FTTP) broadband. Although 5G home broadband can be competitive in speed with fibre-to-the-cabinet (FTTC) broadband, it doesn’t come anywhere close to full fibre (FTTP) technology in speeds.

Best Three 5G Broadband Deals

In the UK, Three currently offers a choice of the following 5G home broadband plans:

  • Home BB 24M Unlimited 5G. If you sign up to Three’s 5G home broadband on a 24-month contract, you’ll pay £19 per month. This is available when you order through this link. There’s a 30-day money back guarantee on this plan.
  • Home BB 1M Unlimited 5G. If you’re looking for more flexibility, you’ll pay £28 per month on a one-month rolling plan. On this plan, you’ll get the flexibility to change or cancel your plan at anytime.

Both plans will give you unlimited data with average download speeds of about 150Mbps. There’s no upfront fee on either plan and you’ll receive the same 5G Hub router from Three.

Service Data Monthly Cost
(will rise each April by £2)
Three
Three 5G Hub
Unlimited
data
150Mbps average speed
£19.00
per month
No upfront fee
24 month contract
See deal  
Three
Three 5G Hub
Unlimited
data
150Mbps average speed
£28.00
per month
No upfront fee
1 month contract
See deal  

Three 5G Hub Router

When you sign up for Three’s 5G home broadband, you’ll receive their 5G Hub router. This is a small device that you’ll need to plug in to a power socket inside your home. It picks up a 5G signal from Three’s network and converts it into a regular wi-fi network that your other devices can use.

Three’s latest 5G Hub router supports a maximum download speed of 4.7Gbps (4,700Mbps). In practice, however, the average speeds will be more like 100-200Mbps on today’s 5G networks.

The 5G Hub supports the latest Wi-Fi 6 technology (802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax), allowing you to share your home broadband connection with up to 64 devices. In addition, there are two Gigabit Ethernet sockets, allowing you to connect wired devices to your home network.

In terms of how your other devices interact with the 5G Hub, it’s no different to using a traditional fibre broadband service. Your 5G Hub router plays the same role as a traditional fibre broadband router and produces a regular wi-fi network that your other devices can connect to. This includes your laptop, tablet, smartphone, smart TV, games console and other smart home devices. You can also use all of the normal apps and services that you’re used to.

The 5G Hub router can also be attached to a mesh wi-fi system (e.g. the Amazon eero, Nest WiFi, Whole Home WiFi or TP-Link Deco) in the normal way. If you like, Three offers the Amazon eero as an optional add-on to their plans, but this is only available if you call them up or if you visit them in store.

The following table shows the technical specifications of Three’s 5G Hub router:

Three 5G Hub
(Zyxel NR5103E v2)
Home Broadband Plans
Price:From £19/month
Data:Unlimited
Unlimited Data:£19/month
Contract Length:1-24 months
Mobile Connectivity
5G Connectivity:Up to 4700 Mbps download
5G Bands:5G NR bands TBC
4G Download Speed:Up to 1600 Mbps download
4G Bands:LTE bands TBC
External Antenna:Yes, 2x TS-9 connectors
Home Network Connectivity
Dual-Band Wi-Fi:Yes
Wi-Fi Connectivity:802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax
Wi-Fi Devices:Up to 64 devices
Ethernet:2 Gigabit Ethernet ports
Other
Dimensions:20.0 x 27.0 x 13.4 cm
Model:Zyxel NR5103E v2
Colour:White
More Information:See three.co.uk

Three’s latest 5G Hub router is the Zyxel NR5103E V2. This launched in 2024.

If you signed up to Three’s 5G home broadband service before this date, you might have an older version of the 5G Hub. In the past, customers have received the ZTE MC888 (2024), the Zyxel NR5103E (September 2022 – November 2023), the ZTE MC801A (February 2022 – September 2022), and the Huawei 5G CPE Pro H112-370 (prior to February 2022). All of these routers are branded as the ‘5G Hub’.

When you cancel your Three Broadband service, you’ll need to return the 5G Hub router to Three.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does Three’s 5G home broadband cost?
Three’s 5G home broadband service is currently available on a choice of two plans:

Both plans come with unlimited data and average download speeds of 150Mbps.
What is Three’s 5G Hub router?
You’ll be supplied with Three’s 5G Hub router when you sign up for 5G home broadband. This is a plug-and-play device that connects to Three’s 5G network, broadcasting a wi-fi signal from it that your other devices can connect to.

The 5G Hub support download speeds of up to 4,700Mbps on 5G. It also supports Wi-Fi 6 connectivity (802.11a/b/g/n/ac/ax) on up to 64 devices at the same time. It has two Gigabit Ethernet sockets, allowing you to connect wired devices to your home network.

You can see more information about the 5G Hub on Three’s website.
How does 5G home broadband compare to fibre broadband?
Three’s 5G home broadband service offers average download speeds of 150Mbps. It’s also cheaper and more flexible than most fibre broadband plans.

The main drawback is that you’re getting highly variable speeds, with fluctuations due to a number of reasons such as the weather, the coverage, and other users in your area. This can make for a frustrating experience if you’re streaming on multiple devices at the same time.
Are there any download limits on Three’s 5G home broadband?
No. There are no download limits on Three’s 5G home broadband. However, they say they reserve the right to suspend your service or to apply traffic management to it if your usage “either exceeds that reasonably expected of someone using the Service or materially affects other users’ enjoyment of the Service, or has an adverse impact on our network”.
Can I get Three’s 5G home broadband where I live?
Three’s 5G home broadband service is now available in selected postcodes across 580 UK towns and cities. You can enter your address on Three’s website to see whether 5G broadband is available where you live.

More Information

For more information about Three’s 5G home broadband, please see their official website.

You can also read our Three Broadband review and our guide to 5G home broadband in the UK.

Your Comments 50 so far

We'd love to hear your thoughts and any questions you may have. So far, we've received 50 comments from readers. You can add your own comment here.

  • Steven Bee said:

    The maximum devices supported by the Three 5G Broadband hub model NR5103EV2 is 32, NOT 64. I found out the hard way after ordering Three 5G Home Broadband. Note that the Three 4G router does support 64 devices. A bit odd having less supported devices on what you’d think to be a more capable 5G device.

  • Steve said:

    I took the plunge and ditched Virgin when they ramped up their prices. I saw on the Three website that I was in a marginal area for 5G so tried a Smarty Sim. First time I used Speedtest I got 700Mbps d/l and 70mbps u/l. I bought the device over the counter here in Edinburgh. The speeds never less than about 550Mbps an often up to 850Mbps. At my dad’s place I was getting 1100Mbps on my Oneplus phone. If you can get a decent signal it’s a no-brainer, I’m just dreading if the proposed merger with Vodafone get given the green light as I’ve had nothing but hassle with them 😦

  • Peter Smithson said:

    I’m toying with going this route when my EE broadband (ADSL) deal ends in a year (can’t wait!).

    I have a mobile on SMARTY which uses the Three network and it get’s 500Mpbs+ download an about 30 upload so I presume I’ll get something similar with Three.

    If that works out, I’ll be getting a download speed about 15 times faster than I have now for about 2/3 of the price.

  • William Elliott said:

    I don’t know where you get your information from as I have been stuck with 3 broadband for 18 months now. It is a total let down especially at peak times. unless you use it throughout the night. If I was interested in this broadband of connection it certainly would not be 3 network of any kind. Customer services is no help either they talk funny in broken English in a way you do not understand and they are constantly fiddling with the mast where I live say geeks at work. They might well say idiots at work. Another thing is they are charging me for 5G when 5 g is not in my area. Do Not trust 3 network I would not be recommending 3 Network as it will only make you miserable angry and without any network to use. It won’t even run a Sky glass tv without making it a completely useless paperweight.

    • Jo replied:

      Having been using this connection since 2019 in more than 5 very different cities I can say I found three to be fair, fast and although customer service may not be English they certainly never stop trying to make you happy!
      Not only have I stuck with these speaker devices that can take 64 connections at one time. I got contracts for each of my own kids as they moved to their own place.
      It was a way I could help each of the kids without breaking my bank and it made them all very happy.
      I’d recommend three to Aberdeen, Angus, Dundee and across England.
      If you don’t find them perfect fit for you, three will cancel and not charge you a penny.
      Whaddya have to lose??

  • Steve said:

    Very interested in this speaking as Virgin customer who has had enough of their in-built price increases.

    The option to take this with me in my campervan is a bonus.

    Currently right on the edge of the 5G service. (Literally yards when I zoom in on the map). If/when this extends, will I be offered a 5G router to replace the 4G I am currently being offered ?

    Might I be able to get 5G were I to install an aerial.

    • Pat Delano replied:

      type in a postal code nearby to your own, that has a 5g signal, when you order, put in your own postal code for delivery.. Others have done this and it works.

  • Jack King said:

    Hi Ken
    I’ve just this last few days taken the plunge and have subscribed to 3 5G Home Broadband for two years, due mostly to indifferent phone line broadband performances at quite high costs. I took the option of the £10 per month for six months rising to £20 for the remainder of the subscription offer, received my Hub Router (different from the one you describe here) which is literally plug & play, and after finding the sweet spot in my small bungalow (next to a window in my living room) was amazed to get download speeds of up to 197 Mbps (variable slightly throughout the day). Uploads are not so great at around 7/10 Mbps, but I don’t do much of that anyway. VPNs come at reduced speeds, but still up to 90 meg downloads, so again a massive improvement.
    I did have one little hic-up when the router lost the 5g network and reduced to 4g ( 30 Mbps download) for a couple of hours, but as I’m right on the extreme edge of the very best 5G service this is not unexpected and will probably continue periodically until the coverage extends and improves.
    I can now enjoy the quite expensive streaming services with no dropouts or stuttering and recommend this to all who live in the right locations and who wish to dump the phone line completely.
    Thanks Ken for all your invaluable help and advice over the past few years.

  • TrevorC said:

    This looks very good for me, assuming I really can get 5g. I currently have Virgin cable which is an eye watering £55 a month. And I had to fight to get it down from £65. That’s just internet – no TV. So I don’t believe the advertised prices of internet providers. Unfortunately I cannot use any other provider as the regular phone line no longer works. Engineers spent two days trying to get it going, but it is an area wide problem and they gave up – and I am not way out in the country.
    Can I use a dedicated home phone with this 5G system? I’ve heard of Voip, but know nothing about it. Can I just buy a Voip phone and connect it to the hub?

    • Steve replied:

      Trevor …. I appreciate that this comment is a little old, however…

      If you have a relatively modern, android smartphone it should have the capacity to make calls over WiFi. It’s within your phone settings and your carrier should be able to help you with this. Alternatively I’ll be happy to advise if you return here.

      Effectively these would be free other than using data in your home internet allowance.

  • Rebecca said:

    I am visiting a relative who does not have the internet for Christmas so I just want to pay for it for 1 month (less if possible) and maybe restart it in the future (if I go to stay there again etc.). Is that possible?

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Rebecca,
      Absolutely! You can just get it on a one-month rolling contract and cancel at any time. When you cancel, you’ll need to return the 5G router to Three. However, you can then sign up again at any time in the future.
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

  • Paul Ainscough said:

    Hi Ken, love the website and advice. I have just renewed my 5G home package with Three, and they have sent me another 5G Hub – the Huawei CPE pro 2. I already had the Huawei CPE Pro 1. They said to keep both hubs. What I wanted to ask is – since the hubs are locked to Three, could a Smarty or ID mobile unlimited nano SIM work in the 5G hub, as they carry the Three network? Just trying to utilise the 2nd hub on the cheap! I find the range around the house on these hubs are quite poor, but when you are close they are 300+Mbps!

  • Alan said:

    Hi guys;
    It says £13/m and then after 6m going to £26/m also the minimum length of contract would be 12m but when click on the link , the 3 website shows £30/m with min contract of 24m

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Alan,
      When you’re on the Three website, choose the 5G Hub and then the ‘Device only’ option at the top. That will allow you to benefit from the exclusive price of £13/month for 6 months, then £26/month. The £30/month plan which is shown by default includes a Samsung Chromebook 4+ laptop as well.
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

  • Mark Hammond said:

    Hi

    I would like to set up 5G Home Broadband with 3. The reception is average at home and I feel an external aerial is necessary. Does anyone have experience of an aerial/router combination or an external router Huawei 5G CPE Win – Outdoor that is available to buy now? many thanks

  • James Buckley said:

    Hi – the article says that “Your 5G Hub plays the same role as your fibre broadband router. You can still connect all of your devices to it”. Just to confirm please: I have computers and iPads that currently work very well on my current WiFi network. If I change to the Three 5G hub, will my current devices all connect to 5G without needing any additional dongles? Thanks.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi James,
      Thanks for your comment. Yes, all of your devices will be able to connect to Wi-Fi & to the internet in the same way as before – there’s no need for your individual devices to support 5G. The 5G mobile network connection simply replaces the fibre broadband connection (the “final mile” between your router and your device is still regular Wi-Fi).
      Hope this helps,
      Ken

  • Lin said:

    I’ve been recommended the 5G Three Hub as my postcode indicated that I’m in a 5G area. However it is not picking up 5G inside my flat. I can only get the 5G if the hub is outside on the balcony which is not very practical. I dont know what else to do to improve this. Not sure if the 5G signal from Three wlll improve in the near future. It looks like I live on the periferals of the 5G coverage in the postcode area.

    It picks up the 4G signal with speeds from 30-120 download and less than 8 for upload. Should I swap it out for their 4G hub which is cheaper but I don’t now if the speeds would be worse than what Im seeing with the 5G hub.

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Lin,
      Thanks for your comment. I guess you have three options here:
      1. Consider investing in an external antenna. Given your able to get 5G on your balcony, this would suggest that you’d also be able to get 5G with an external antenna.
      2. You can wait until the 5G signal gets a little stronger – your 5G Hub will be future proof and will give you 5G when this happens.
      3. If you downgrade to the 4G Hub, this would give you a saving on your monthly bill. There shouldn’t be a negative impact on your 4G performance but check that Three definitely offers the 4G Hub in your area (I believe they only offer the 5G Hub if you’re in a 5G area).
      Ken

  • Eddy said:

    Coming to this very late – April 2021 – as the Three offer has only just reached Watford. Any updates on reliability since its launch anyone?

    • David Webster replied:

      Hi Eddy

      I’ve had a Three Mobile Broadband Hub since July 7th, first bill came out of my account August 2nd. Since August 3rd: I am unable to connect to the hub with my personal phone and my work phone (it connects but says ‘Internet not available’ and my speeds have gone down from 300mbps to 70mpbs, sometimes far, far lower. Internet has cut out several times per day since the first bill has been paid. Almost impossible to get in touch with customer services. The one time I did they told me to reset the router, which works 30% of the time. Phones are able to connect connect for around an hour then have the same problem again.

      • Eddy replied:

        Thanks for the info, David. Doesn’t sound that attractive, does it? But the issue has been settled for me – in the short to medium term, at least – because there is no 5G mast in the area yet. In short, the marketing was way ahead of the reality…

  • Lex said:

    Hi there
    Was seriously unimpressed by Three’s previous 4G effort (or Relish as it was before) – speed was 2.5MB or lower most of this year… until 5G arrived in this bit of east London in November! For 25 quid a month I’m now getting 250-480MB d/l speeds and up to about 50MB upload speeds – life changing for someone video editing at home. Hopefully the speed endures! For now: highly recommended on service and speed. This might be the most valuable use of 5G for now. Have scarcely noticed 5g on phone when out and about…

  • Jamie said:

    I know a few people who have bought the Huawei router outright and had success using a smarty SIM card (cheaper than three but same service), they were offering unlimited for £18 and no contract.

  • Michael said:

    It really annoys me that companys are allowed to use the word unlimited and a fair usage policy in the same sentence. First of all unlimited MEANS NO LIMIT.
    And three reserves the right to suspend your service if they think you are exceeding
    the expected usage which contradicts the word unlimited. I have been with 3 for 14 years and am quite happy with the service but sometimes the speeds are a bit poor.
    Also you say you say you will compare deals with other suppliers but only show bt which is more expensive and refer to other websites to check prices so you are not comparing them just bt. Virginmedia is £31 for 100mps and phone line for 12 months which is cheaper and with phone line and you do not need an engineer. I average between 300 to 800 GB per month I stream a lot from Netflix Amazon youtube and online tv. This is on my virgin connection at home, I also use about 200GB via tethering from 3 and virgin mobile in my car as I am a taxi driver and use a tablet. I have also spoke to three on Twitter and was told there is a fair usage policy of 1000GB which I agree is fair . But that’s what should be said then 1000GB limit not unlimited. And I dont want to hear anyone saying I’m greedy or people like me are the problem because if someone offers unlimited then that’s what you should get.

    • Daisy replied:

      A few years ago i contacted ofcom about this when i complained about Tesco mobile using the word unlimited but then capping you on a fair usage policy, they told me that if mobile companies use the word unlimited it has to be truly unlimited and they made it law . so if 3 use the word unlimited they are breaking the law if they cap your usage no matter how much data you use and as people are streaming Netflix 4k, amazon prime and not to mention xbox and ps4 gaming your 1000gb is quite average now for most households.

  • Alex said:

    G,
    Three stores are now selling 5G Broadband in those selected area’s. I recommend going online & checking your availability, then ordering via the website. 👌🏻

  • Vijay Kumar said:

    Hey Ken, thanks for the great site.
    Andy, I have a question about 5G coverage in Manchester when it arrives in November sometime. Will it cover greater Manchester (including outlying areas like Trafford) or just the city of Manchester initially? I am particularly interested in M33 area of Manchester.
    Thanks!

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Vijay,
      Thanks for your comment. That’s a great question! I’m not sure, to be honest. What you’ve seen with the launch of Three’s 5G service in London is they’ve initially launched it only in selected parts of the city. I imagine a similar thing will happen when they roll out in Manchester, but that coverage will slowly expand over time. So hopefully you’ll get 5G coverage soon in your area, but keep a close eye on the coverage maps later this year to check.
      Ken

      • Vijay replied:

        Thanks Ken. That’s how 4g was rolled out. I have got mixed response from Three. Store said the whole of Manchester will be covered from day one, both for broadband and phone, but their online chat suggested that Trafford might just be outside of the initial coverage. I will have to wait and see.

    • Alex replied:

      Vijay,

      Keep an eye on Three’s plans (I have a friend who works for Three). I’ve been informed that November through to the end of the year is when things will get exciting! 😁😏

      • Vijay replied:

        Have you heard anymore Ken, about 5g roll out outside of London? It seems the outage Theee had a few weeks back might have been related to 5g infrastructure setup? Wonder if your friend who works with Three have any inside track on the latest news/plans for 5g broadband and/or phone coverage in Greater Manchester? Are we still looking at end December or is it going to be beyond? Thanks for any updates.

  • Andy said:

    I live right between Vauxhall and Camberwell and thought I’d see what the service is like. I got my 5G hub last night and going to test it for a couple of weeks before deciding whether to return it or cancel my TalkTalk phone/broadband package altogether. First impressions are positive. Being a ‘connected home’ I have a mix of 24 wireless/wired devices connected and they are all plying nicely.
    The hub itself definitely perks up being near a window, and the instructions are very clear that a windowsill is the preferred location. Initially trying it where the existing router sits was not great at all but by the window – and actually a better position, not needing to be near the master socket – it seems very happy.
    Speeds are pretty variable, running an hourly speedtest over two evenings, my lowest download speed was 97.7Mbps and the highest so far 397Mbps. Three tell me the average should be 200 for my postcode. Upload is consistently around 20Mbps. If this continues over the next 12 days I’ll be keeping it and cutting the broadband cord.
    Definitely worth a trial given there’s a 14 day return period once it’s available in your area.

    • CJ replied:

      Appreciate your post and wonder how your getting on with almost 6 months usage. What device did you get? I don’t want to get a 4g device to find 5g arrived in months time for London. Often in North America but unsure most are dual compatible even if unlocked (+ separate US 5g rollout). Thanks

  • BRM said:

    Hi Ken – Thanks for the great site, best research i’ve found on this topic. I’m currently looking to change my setup from standard broadband but can’t get fibre at my address (London zone3!), so I’m looking at 4G or 5G home broadband. Looking at coverage maps I can’t currently get 5G, but I expect this should be available soon. Is there a router I could buy or contract I could sign up to that will enable me to use 4G straight away and then 5G as soon as it becomes available (without changing the hardware)? Thanks

    • Ken replied:

      Hi there,
      Thanks for your comment and a very good question! Sadly, I don’t think it’s currently possible to buy a 5G router on a SIM-free/unlocked basis. Also, Three won’t sell you a 5G router if you don’t currently live within a 5G coverage area. One potential alternative would be to sign up for Vodafone GigaCube. Unlike Three, I don’t believe they’ll stop you from buying the 5G router if you’re living in an area that only has 4G. However, the service tends to be more expensive (£50/month if you’re looking for an unlimited data allowance).
      Ken

  • Mike said:

    Also I see you mention Vodafone as an alternative at various price points and data limits but their website is offering unlimited data (4g and 5g) at £23 to £30 pounds depending on speed requirements.
    Why would vodafone be offering a better deal at lower costs.
    All sounds confusing to me.

  • Mike said:

    Hi Ken,

    Great article as always.
    It all appeared too good to be true until I saw their acceptable usage policy.
    It appears this is now totally at their discretion with no clear guideline on what usage levels may be deemed excessive by them.
    Previously they clearly stated a usage of up to 1TB a month and then their traffic management may or may not flag the usage as excessive or possibly commercial.
    With this new policy it could be anything from 100gb a month to God knows what.
    It’s entirely at their discretion.
    Any idea what would be deemed excessive by them under this new policy?

    • Ken replied:

      Hi Mike,
      Thanks for your comment. Unfortunately, I don’t have any idea of what this “acceptable usage policy” corresponds to. Given it’s such a new service, I imagine we’ll need to wait for some real user feedback on it. You can probably use the 1,000GB (1TB) figure as an initial estimate/lower bound of what they might consider acceptable usage to be. Even though this policy doesn’t apply to the 5G home broadband service, I’d be very surprised if they had more stringent restrictions on 5G broadband compared to 4G home broadband…
      Ken

  • G said:

    This sounded great, so I called Three to order right away. First person I spoke to had never heard of this offering, and transferred me to someone else. This person told me that the new 5G router offering is not available yet and cannot be ordered. I was told to register my interest on the website instead.

      • G replied:

        Thanks, I tried a second time over the phone and got through to someone who knew about the product’s existence. However I was told this time that it couldn’t be ordered over the phone, and that I should visit one of their stores to order it.

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