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You know, I've reviewed all types of
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internet services right here on this
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channel. And by some of the comments on
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my YouTube videos, you might think that
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you've got no choice in the matter. It's
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either fiber or nothing. It's just not
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that simple. And what I'm about to share
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with you today is going to help you find
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the best internet option for your
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household and maybe save you some money,
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too. I started a long-term test of 5G
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home internet back in 2022. first with
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T-Mobile and later testing Verizon and
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AT&T. And for the past three years in
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counting, I've been using 5G
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exclusively. No fiber backup, no cable
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safety net. So, why don't I begin with
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where I actually agree with those
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comments I showed earlier. Where fiber
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is available, it is typically best from
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a performance standpoint. Most fiber
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providers lead with their best selling
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point and that is the speeds. The
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biggest advantage is symmetrical speeds,
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and you can see that in this chart from
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AT&T Fiber's website. Your upload speed
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matches your download speed. You don't
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get that with cable or 5G home internet.
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So that means with fiber, whether you're
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streaming a show, hopping on a Zoom
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call, or uploading files for work,
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you're going to get the same fast speeds
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in both directions. So, does that mean
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you need fiber to do all that stuff? Of
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course not. But there are some
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trade-offs with 5G home internet. 5G
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home internet services rely on cell
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phone towers, and depending on factors
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like your proximity to those towers and
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any obstructions that may be in the way,
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your performance can vary quite a bit.
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Even the location of the gateway inside
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your home can make a difference. The
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providers post speed ranges like these,
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and you might fall on the low end, the
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high end, or even outside these ranges
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entirely. And another factor to
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consider, network congestion. When the
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5G network gets busy, your speeds may be
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slowed down and there's really nothing
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you can do about it. So, your exact
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experience with 5G home internet is kind
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of hard to predict unless maybe you've
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got a close neighbor who's got it, but I
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thought I'd share my experience anyway.
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And after several years of testing,
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streaming TV has worked reliably. And
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you might be surprised by this. Netflix
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recommends only 15 megabits per second
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for 4K streaming. So when you see people
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saying they need gige internet, it's
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definitely not just for streaming. But
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do watch out for this. Some live TV
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streaming services like Hulu Plus live
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TV are not compatible with 5G home
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internet and that's because of dynamic
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IP addresses. YouTube TV and most other
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streaming services will work out just
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fine. General web browsing like checking
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your email, online shopping and online
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banking, absolutely no issues at all and
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the same for using smart home devices
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like security cameras. Now, I was most
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concerned about working from home, but I
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have been able to run Michael Saves
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using 5G home internet plus some
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freelance work as well that requires a
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VPN, multiple programs at once, and the
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occasional Zoom call. So, if you're
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getting the advertised speeds for 5G
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home internet, all of those tasks should
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check out just fine. A couple though
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could be more challenging. First, and
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perhaps the biggest deal breaker for
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many households is multiplayer gaming.
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5G's ping can be inconsistent. So, if
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you need low latency for competitive
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gaming, it is not the first choice. But,
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if you're like me and just play games on
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your phone to pass time, you'll probably
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be okay. And as I mentioned earlier,
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upload speeds on 5G, they are not
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symmetrical. They're going to be slower
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than your download speed. So if you're
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constantly uploading massive files and
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on a tight deadline, that could be a
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real issue. Over the years, I've
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uploaded hundreds of videos on 5G,
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including 4K content and client work,
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and it's really never been a problem.
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But my uploads have not been urgent,
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just a ballpark. But most videos I make
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upload in about 10 minutes or less. And
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there's also larger households. If
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you've got lots of people using lots of
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devices all at the same time, 5G's
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modest download speeds may struggle with
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that. All right. So, if we're talking
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strictly about performance, fiber wins.
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But there is one main area where 5G can
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beat all other internet providers, and
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that is on pricing. No contract plans
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for 5G home internet start at around $50
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a month, sometimes less if you bundle
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with phone service. And because of the
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recent deal war, price guarantees for up
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to 5 years are common. Plus, 5G home
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internet is plug and play. No technician
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visit, no installation fee. I believe
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more competition is better, and that is
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the reason why I've been following these
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services so closely. While fiber is
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better from a technical standpoint, I
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think 5G home internet provides a solid
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alternative as long as you're a price
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sensitive customer with everyday
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internet needs. Give this video a like
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if you found it helpful and use the free
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tool on michaelssteels.com
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to compare the best internet options
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where you live. Thanks for watching.
