Verizon is launching a 5G home internet service (Update: Live now in 4 cities)

Update, October 1, 2018 (11:15AM EST): Today, Verizon switched on what is technically the world’s first commercial 5G network. However, the network is only available in select areas within four U.S. cities: Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, and Sacramento.

What’s worse is that the network is only temporary. The service is currently based on Verizon’s 5G TF standard, but the global 5G NR standard hasn’t yet been approved by the regulatory body known as 3GPP. This means at some point in the future, Verizon is going to have to upgrade its own hardware — and the in-home hardware of anyone buying into this 5G Home service.

In other words, unless you are absolutely desperate to check out 5G speeds in your home, it’d be smart to pass on this service for now.

Original Article, September 11, 2018 (06:14PM EST): Verizon has talked extensively about bringing 5G service to it customers and even confirmed its plans to make it available as soon as this fall. True to its word, Verizon announced this afternoon that it is going to begin rolling out a 5G broadband service starting on October 1.

Branded as Verizon 5G Home, the broadband internet service will initially be limited to Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, and Sacramento. While the service won’t be using the mobile 5G standard, Verizon will utilize mmWave technology which uses spectrum between 30 and 300 GHz.

Using Verizon 5G Home, customers can expect to see download speeds around 300mbps with the network sometimes peaking close to 1 Gib. Additionally, Verizon will not be putting any data cap on the plan.

Customers wishing to sign up for Verizon 5G Home can do so starting on September 13 at 8 am ET. The broadband internet service will cost current Verizon customers $50 a month while non-Verizon customers will have to pay $70 a month. The company states that it won’t be charging any additional hardware fees or installation charges.

Verizon is also sweetening the deal by giving customers a couple of freebies. In addition to a free three-month membership for YouTube TV, the company will let customers choose between receiving a free Chromecast Ultra or Apple TV 4K at the time of installation. 

You can learn more about Verizon 5G Home and sign up for the service when it’s available by clicking on the button below.