Three 5G network story is a little different to its main competitors in that, while it will soon switch on its 5G service in London, it is initially for home broadband use only. Its 5G mobile network won't be active until later this year.
However, that by design rather than necessity. The company believes that one of the major battlegrounds for 5G connectivity is in the home, not just your pocket.
To illustrate this, the provider has been running "secret" trials with 78 customers hooked up to 5G home broadband routers.
They received, on average, 138Mbps broadband speeds throughout the test. All without any cables run into their properties. That's more than a match for most home broadband connections and far more than the national cabled average of 18.5Mbps.
Of course, the final product will be about context – location, usage scenarios and stability. But, Three's aim is to take on regular, cabled broadband service with an easier to use, more flexible alternative.
It claims that, with a fluid 5G solution it can negate many customers' complaints with regular services.
"Customers shouldn't pay for stuff you don’t need, have an inconsistent connection, suffer regular price hikes, or wait around for engineers," it told us at a London briefing.
The latter is especially true, it said, because the kit can be sent to and set up by the customers themselves in a day – much like a mobile phone. After all, it comes with a SIM card and just needs a power supply to work.
Sadly, we don't yet know about price or exact release date, save for "August". But, we'll ensure to update you the moment we find out.