5G? It’s really fast – at using up your cash

Samsung S10 5G

From £72 per month, vodafone.co.uk 

Never mind the speeds, the new 5G network will drain your bank account faster than any previous technology, with price plans costing more than £70 a month to enjoy the new, ultra-fast mobile network.

This is all part of the thrill of being an early adopter, of course: being fleeced, while also savouring the fact that you’ve got the new technology so early that it barely works at all.

So what is it actually like being a pioneering 5G user? I have to admit it’s a little less exciting than 3G or 4G simply because the phones are pretty much identical to 4G handsets, just with faster data speeds.

The mobile networks have 5G operating in big cities across the UK, and I set out with a thumpingly unexciting 5G phone (Samsung’s S10 5G, almost exactly the same as the normal S10, just bigger) to taste the future in London using Vodafone.

I can report that the future is, as billed, quite a bit faster. On 5G, you get about triple the data speeds (great if you’re watching a video, but not exactly the kind of difference that’ll have you running down the street spraying everyone with champagne).

In the not-too-distant future I’d expect people might just buy a phone connection and skip out home broadband altogether.

In the not-too-distant future I’d expect people might just buy a phone connection and skip out home broadband altogether

But for now? It’s hard to get too giddy. Vodafone’s network is (as promised) very fast, but even in London, there are only a few tiny places where it works – and the rest of the time you’re back on the boring old 4G network… but paying £72 a month for the privilege.