O2 Home Broadband Deals

What is O2 home broadband?

O2 home broadband is a home broadband service running on O2’s network. What that means is, rather than internet reaching your router through fibre optic cables, it travels wirelessly from a nearby mobile mast. That also means your eventual internet connection is powered by 4G or 5G.

But once the signals reach your router, the process of getting a Wi-Fi network is much the same as with a fibre connection, in that your router will beam out a network so all your devices can get online.

And while the fastest full fibre connections are faster than O2 home broadband, if you can get a 5G signal then you’ll be able to get far higher speeds than the average fibre ones.

Plus, as 4G and 5G-powered broadband doesn’t require cables, you can also get battery-powered mobile broadband routers, which you can take with you when travelling and bring Wi-Fi to laptops, tablets, and other gadgets, even when there’s no socket available.

Why would I need it?

Home broadband powered by 5G or 4G has a lot of potential benefits, including that it’s often cheaper than fibre broadband, and is in many cases available on short-term 30-day plans, which makes it an ideal temporary Wi-Fi solution.

Why would you want temporary home broadband? Well, if you’re not planning to stay somewhere for a year or more, or if you just need quick access to the internet while you wait for your fibre broadband to be installed. Or you just like flexibility.

4G and 5G home broadband is very quick to install too (which also helps make it a good temporary option), as it’s plug and play, so there’s no need to wait for an engineer appointment.

You also don’t need a landline to use 5G or 4G home broadband, so that’s a way to save money – beyond the fact that this form of internet is often cheaper anyway.

Other reasons you might want to consider 4G or 5G home broadband include its availability. While there isn’t the requisite coverage everywhere, it is widely available, and some places – particularly in less urban locations – will have better speeds with 4G or 5G than with fibre.

Finally, while battery-powered mobile broadband options are the best for travel, you can also travel with 5G or 4G home broadband, and just plug the router in anywhere with a socket, such as a hotel room or a holiday cottage.

What devices are available on O2 home broadband?

At the time of writing O2 doesn’t offer any true home broadband devices, but it does have a range of battery-powered mobile broadband devices which could also be used for home broadband.

The top option on O2 is the Netgear Nighthawk M6, which delivers superfast 5G speeds, has an Ethernet port, a touchscreen for managing the device, and can get up to 32 gadgets online.

There’s also the Netgear Nighthawk M1 and the Alcatel Pocket Hotspot 4G, both of which top out at 4G speeds, so they’re not as fast, but if 4G is all you have at home then they’ll suit perfectly.

Of course, the other option is to get a data-only SIM card on O2 and pair this with a 4G or 5G router that you’ve bought elsewhere. O2 offers up to unlimited data with data SIMs, and you can get 1-month, 12-month, and 24-month plans.

O2 mobile coverage

O2’s 4G coverage reaches around 99% of the UK population, and the network has 5G in upwards of 3,000 towns and cities, so both technologies are widely available on the network, though 4G far more so.

Note however that coverage can be different indoors to outdoors, so pay close attention to O2’s coverage checker to see what you can expect in your home.

Who else offers home broadband?

Three, EE, and Vodafone all offer 4G and 5G home broadband, and unlike O2 you can get true home broadband routers and plans on these networks, rather than having to choose a mobile broadband device or a data SIM. You can also get 4G and 5G home broadband from National Broadband, which will pair you with the network that has the best coverage in your home.