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I've been testing T-Mobile 5G Home Internet for a year and a half, sharing my review of
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the service all along the way. But recently, I was this close to canceling
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Instead, I called T-Mobile's customer support, they sent me a new Wi-Fi gateway, and now
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I've got a lot more to share. I've put together everything I've learned about T-Mobile Home Internet into this one video
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Let's get started. Number one, competitive monthly pricing. Price is the number one reason why I considered T-Mobile Home Internet in the first place
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And maybe that's why you're here too. The price, $50 a month with auto pay at recording time
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And recently, I read this article. It says a price increase for new customers may be on the horizon
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But even if that does happen, I would expect T-Mobile's pricing to remain competitive
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The current rate, well, it's cheaper than fiber and it's cheaper than cable in most areas
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Number two, T-Mobile phone customers get the best deal. You do not need a T-Mobile phone plan to sign up for the internet service
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I don't have one, but customers who do bundle wireless phone and internet get a discount
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It's a pretty good one too. Some people are paying only $30 a month for the internet plan
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Number three, price lock guarantee. T-Mobile Home Internet includes a price lock guarantee
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Well, what's that? Unlike many of its competitors, your rate will not go up after the first year with T-Mobile
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I paid $50 a month in 2022, the same price in all of 2023, and now in 2024
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That's the price lock. Number four, auto pay discount limitations. T-Mobile's auto pay discount for home internet service is $5 a month
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But to get that savings, you cannot pay with a credit card anymore
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This is a change and it happened in 2023. Your payment method must now be either a bank account or a debit card to get those
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auto pay savings. There's no annual contract with T-Mobile Home Internet. You pay for one month at a time and you can cancel at any time
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That's number five today. And number six is T-Mobile's 15-day test drive
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I really like this because it allows you to try out T-Mobile Home Internet alongside your
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current internet provider. If T-Mobile does not work out, just cancel the service within 15 days and you'll get
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a full refund. My tip, save the box the equipment came in
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That'll make the return process easier. More now about that equipment. Number seven, equipment is included
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Once you sign up for T-Mobile Home Internet, you'll get a Wi-Fi gateway in the mail and
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it arrives pretty quickly. A Wi-Fi gateway is simply a router and modem in a single unit
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Don't worry though, this is not an add-on. You pay for the equipment as part of the regular plan price
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So this, if you ever decide to cancel service, you will need to return the equipment
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Otherwise, T-Mobile is going to charge you and it could be up to $370
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Number eight, easy self-installation. No technician required here. Setting up service, it's as easy as plugging in the gateway and following a few steps from
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the T-Mobile Home Internet app. I will say based on my personal testing, the location of the gateway, it makes a huge difference
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The T-Mobile Home Internet app is going to recommend placing the Wi-Fi gateway by a window
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or on an upper floor. Take a look here by a window. I'm getting a very good connection
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You see it from the screen on the gateway. But when I move the gateway to a different room of my house and away from a window, the
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connection drops to good. The app will guide you through the setup. I've also created my own step-by-step guide, link to that down below
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We're up to number nine and besides the pricing, another main benefit of T-Mobile Home Internet
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is that you don't have a data cap. This plan, it includes unlimited data
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But data speeds can be inconsistent. That's number 10 and I want to share my experience with you in more detail
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I'll start with this list of problems I've had with T-Mobile Home Internet
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Slower speeds at night, occasional lag with gaming, slower upload speeds, and temporarily
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losing my service. T-Mobile Home Internet uses T-Mobile's 5G and 4G LTE networks and that's to provide
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internet service to your entire home. But when T-Mobile's network is busy, home internet customers will experience slower
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data speeds. And the reason, T-Mobile gives top priority to its postpaid wireless customers, not home internet
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This is one drawback of T-Mobile Home Internet that cable internet providers like Xfinity
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have pointed out repeatedly. But of course, Xfinity has its own agenda
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Check out these speeds. This is what T-Mobile says you can expect with home internet
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Download speeds between 72 and 245 megabits per second. Upload between 15 and 31
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And latency or ping between 19 and 37 milliseconds. Now when I've conducted speed tests of T-Mobile Home Internet, I am usually within the advertised
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ranges, not always. Here I'm showing you a speed test I ran today
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More than 300 megabits per second download. When I'm getting these speeds, a handful of devices can be connected to the network
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and in use at the same time. The performance is excellent. Working from home, gaming, streaming TV, using smart home devices, I've done it all
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But when T-Mobile's network is congested, it is definitely noticeable. Speed tests will dip to the lower end of the advertised ranges, sometimes below
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This is something T-Mobile acknowledges. On its website, it says 25% of customers see speeds below the ranges, another 25% above them
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My biggest frustration with T-Mobile Home Internet has been losing my connection altogether
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Now this does not happen a lot, but when it does, it's really inconvenient
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When I called T-Mobile customer support recently, ready to cancel, they offered to send me a
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new Wi-Fi gateway. I took them up on that offer. My old gateway and the new gateway look the same from the outside, but T-Mobile says there
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are differences with the internal components, and that should help minimize my connectivity issues
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Stay tuned, I'll keep you posted. Number 11 is compatibility issues, and I'm digging into the fine print for the next few
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points that I want to make. Let's start with live TV streaming services
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T-Mobile says live TV services that rely on IP address for specific location data just
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aren't compatible. I've tested the major live TV services, and this appears to mostly be a problem with
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Hulu Live TV and Sling TV. And I'd say Hulu Live more than Sling
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YouTube TV, my favorite live TV service, is compatible with T-Mobile Home Internet, and
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so are these other live TV services. They've all confirmed to me that they work with the service
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To be clear, this is not a widespread issue. Having most live TV services as well as on-demand and free services should not be a problem
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And overall, I've had a great experience streaming with T-Mobile Home Internet
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Number 12, device connection charge. More fine print here. In late 2022, T-Mobile started charging a $35 device connection fee to new home internet customers
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Now, this was not a thing when I signed up, but I have reported on it, and some people
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have told me they got this fee waived. Still, I'd be prepared to pay it
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Number 13, also be prepared for this, a credit check. When you sign up for T-Mobile Home Internet, you will have to undergo a credit check
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And I assume this is because of the equipment they provide. If this is a problem for you, consider Metro by T-Mobile
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It also sells T-Mobile Home Internet. With the Metro version, you don't have a credit check, but you will have to pay $50 upfront
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for the gateway. Plus, only Metro phone plan customers are eligible. I've got good news and bad news
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The good news is that T-Mobile Home Internet is expanding. The bad news, not everyone who wants it is able to get it
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Number 14, check availability on T-Mobile's website. I'll drop a link below where you can enter your address and see if you are eligible
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If not, you can get added to a waitlist. I was on that waitlist at one time
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If you're not eligible, you may be offered T-Mobile Home Internet Lite
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Now, this is a plan with data caps, and I don't recommend it
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It's really nothing like the unlimited plan that I've been talking about today
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In the meantime, you may also want to consider Verizon 5G Home Internet
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It's a similar service that uses 5G towers. I've tested that one as well alongside the T-Mobile service, and it's been a very solid service
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Number 15, don't skip out on the perks. T-Mobile Home Internet is known to offer one-time sign-up perks
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I got a $50 prepaid card. At recording time, it's up to $150
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There are also free streaming offers available. Fewer than in the past, T-Mobile Home Internet customers get access to T-Mobile Tuesdays
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That's a popular rewards program currently being folded into a new T-Life app
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For price-sensitive customers, T-Mobile Home Internet is definitely worth checking out. Now, fiber, it is usually best for speed and performance, but these 5G services are growing
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because of the affordable pricing, and many households are finding that the performance
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it lives up to their expectations. I update home internet deals on my website
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That's michaelsagedeals.com. Thank you for watching today, and I hope to see you back here soon
