5G: a real alternative to fixed-line broadband

With large swathes of the country still without access to fixed-line broadband services and the completion of the National Broadband Plan some years away, the introduction of 5G mobile networks offers a viable alternative for those who can no longer afford to wait.

Ten times faster than its predecessor 4G technology, 5G is a realistic option for individuals and businesses who need high-speed broadband connectivity, according to Karl Duffy, head of enterprise and public sector with Three Ireland. He points out that the speeds offered by Three’s 5G network can equal those available from fixed-line networks.

“Our 5G service is the most consistent and the fastest in the country,” he says. “That’s verified by Ookla, the independent service that provides internet access performance metrics. The median download speed was 238Mbps in the latest report and I have seen people get up to 1.4 to 1.5Gbps in some cases.”

The report he refers to is Ookla’s Speedtest Awards Winner for 5G mobile network speed during Q3-Q4 2021, which Three won with a speed score of 230.79Mbps, median download speeds of 238.70Mbps, and median upload speeds of 22.35Mbps.

That score was achieved as a result of the design of the Three network. “The key point is that we have dedicated 5G radio spectrum,” Duffy explains. “We don’t blend it with 4G. Three customers get a pure 5G service. We are the only operator in the country to do that.”

Of course, ultra-high speeds are of little use without the coverage to deliver the service where it’s needed. But Three has addressed that as well. “A lot has happened at Three over the past year,” Duffy points out. “We are now at about 80 per cent population coverage. That’s doubled in a year, and we plan to get to 85 per cent by the end of this year. The rollout is going very well, and we now have 5G in every county. That’s very important because we are bridging the urban-rural divide. We have 895 dedicated 5G sites around the country now and we are seeing usage increase by 22 per cent month on month.”

Convenience

That coverage is already beginning to fill some significant gaps. “When you look at our coverage map and the map of where fibre is available, you’ll find that we are reaching tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of homes and businesses which have no access to fibre broadband at present – 5G broadband also serves super remote areas where it is not practical and too expensive to bring fibre.”

This is about more than convenience and the ability to download movies without interruptions, however. “The national digital agenda talks about the benefits and opportunities of going more and more online,” he notes. “For example, if Covid had happened 10 years ago we would have been in a lot more trouble. The Digital Ireland Framework sets out a pathway for Ireland to be a digital leader internationally. If people don’t have access to high-speed broadband, we are not delivering on that digital agenda, but the National Broadband Plan is not scheduled to finish until 2027. We can’t wait five years.”

Connectivity of 5G will also prove useful even where there is broadband access. “For example, we have a customer who is a national service provider. They had an incident where their wifi went down. But they needed to get back online as quickly as possible. They put a call in to us and within 24 hours we had set up a 5G network wifi for them. That would have been impossible using traditional technology.”

And then there are the home workers struggling with competing demands for their domestic broadband connections. “You have kids and parents all running off the same wifi connection,” he notes. “It can become congested very quickly and we are getting a lot of interest from people looking for their own dedicated 5G connection at home. That connection is very simple to set up for a householder. There is also a technician install option where we look out for the best location in the home to place the router and set everything up for you.”

Those are not the only use cases for this highly advanced technology of course. Manufacturing industry is already using it to support sophisticated internet of things networks while other applications include smart city sensor networks, telemedicine and autonomous vehicle control.

And people needn’t worry about 5G being overtaken just yet. “Generations of mobile technology tend to be about 10 to 12 years apart,” says Duffy. “It’s going to be end of the decade before people start talking about 6G.”