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Connecting to a mobile hotspot can be great in a pinch, but can you use your smartphone to replace your whole home’s internet? While the short answer is yes, your connection’s effectiveness will vary based on your carrier and where you live. As with basic call reception, the strength of a mobile hotspot depends on your location, but your network provider also plays a role in whether or not it makes sense to use your phone’s mobile hotspot for home internet.
With the advances of 5G now taking hold across most major U.S. cities, those who live within the urban sprawl might find that it’s faster than their home connection. Those in rural areas, however, will likely find that the cellular connection just isn’t good enough to use their phone properly let alone as a mobile hotspot. Hotspots rely on a steady signal, and the lower it goes, the worse it’ll be.
You will also need to double-check your carrier’s permissions for hosting a hotspot as some networks will limit the number of devices and the amount of data. For example, Verizon’s device limit is five, while most carriers have tiered data caps starting at 5GB per month. Your particular device could also play into your decision, but generally speaking, it’s pretty easy to turn on your phone’s mobile hotspot, especially if you’re an Android user.
There’s more than just 5G connections to think about
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Of course, there are other limitations to using a phone’s mobile hotspot to replace your home internet, and your home itself could be a key factor. The size of the house can also play into how effective your phone’s hotspot is for other devices. While newer phones’ hotspots meet a larger range, the connection can be weakened if there’s too much in the way, such as walls and furniture.
Another hurdle with relying on your phone to provide internet service for your entire home is the battery. Turning your phone into a bite-sized router could be added to the list of habits that are draining your phone battery, especially older models with weaker batteries. Even if it’s plugged in and charging during use, this can potentially lead to overheating situations, as the phone isn’t sitting idle with the hotspot on.
Rather than using your phone’s hotspot, it’s probably better to use USB tethering or investigate 5G or 4G routers. These take a SIM card subscribed to a network and essentially acts as a hotspot without requiring a phone. If you already have an active SIM card, it can be used as well. Looking at networks that are already providing this, Verizon, for example, now has a 5G Home Internet package that you can take advantage of.
