Using Three SIM-only for home broadband?

I'm considering moving to Three (4G) for my home broadband as TalkTalk/Openreach are failing to provide a stable and decent connection (14Mb down, 0.8Mb up). I've ran a couple speed tests on the Three network with my phone, and they range from 50Mb to 70Mb down — a speed I'd be very happy with.

Is there any reason why I couldn't use their SIM only plans as home broadband, providing my own 4G modem and using their 3internet APN (to avoid CGNAT)? It's quite a bit cheaper than through their home broadband package, and a frugal [censored] like me couldn't avoid the chance to save a bit of cash if possible.

I've looked through their terms and couldn't find any reason why this wouldn't work or be allowed, but I just wanna make sure or know if anyone's had any similar experiences. Cheers!

Edited by thebigdolphin1 (Sat 17-Jul-21 19:06:39)

No reason why not at all.

I ran for a while simply using my (non-Three) phone with their unlimited SIM, and tethering my laptop and iPad to it. Ofcom told them off a few years ago for saying what purposes the phone SIM could be used for, and also for suggesting to customers that 1TB per month was a download limit.

Re the latter constraint, they do now instead say that consistently exceeding 1TB pm could lead to suspicion of business use, which is not allowed on the normal SOHO tariffs. I've a feeling I'm uploading a lot more than that as I'm running an outside security camera to the cloud via the old B311 router bought from them for the purpose.

I'm not sure providing your own 4G modem would be cost-effective unless you already have it. See this page. The hub comes with the SIM card included and the £23 covers the unlimited usage. (No phone service). I see they are throwing in a cheap 32" TV as well .

PS: Maybe I should see about a free upgrade of the B311 considering I've had it over two years!

Edited by pluralist (Sat 17-Jul-21 22:21:54)

Hey mate, thanks so much for the info. Looks like this is what I'll be doing then - so long, TalkTalk!

I assume you mean 'limits' of 1TB rather than 1GB? Otherwise I may get in a bit of trouble haha 😂 I'm sure I wouldn't get anywhere near on a frequent basis, but either way I should technically be in the right as I'm still not using it commercially.

I'm considering just buying a preowned Huawei B535 off ebay, ends up saving about 50 quid plus some more from a cashback scheme, and I get to keep the modem (apparently with Three you just rent it). Three's unlimited SIM-only deal can be had for £16/mo if you follow the right promo links. I considered using Smarty (same cost with only 30 day contracts), but apparently you're forced to use CGNAT with them which I'd rather avoid.

Yep! 1TB, which is why my 3GB is not a problem ROFL!

Bear in mind that 4G router hardware, chips and antennae, are never up to the standard of the current phones. Phones are basically mass market with benefits of scale, and 4G routers quite small beer.

See the different speeds in my sig.

I'm honestly not expecting much, if it can beat or even match my 15Mb/s "fibre" I'll be happy considering the price alone.

But I'll keep that in mind, seems strange that they wouldn't use the same hardware. My phone only cost £100, so if a router/modem that retails at a higher price can't match the performance I'd be kinda shocked. From what I've read, the B535 is supposed to be a decent mid-range one, and I think it's the same one Three actually hands out with their mobile broadband.

Do you find 4G connections to be relatively stable? I know it'll differ between carrier, location and device, but just as a general rule would you say its been sufficient? I've honestly rarely used mobile data on my phone, so I've got very little experience — in fact, I use Three's free 200MB/month PAYG SIM and I've never even used the whole data allowance haha.

It was a Black Friday thing just before Christmas 2018 IIRC. I was on AAISP for FTTC and BT for landline. Low end EE mobile contract.

I hardly ever used the landline and the combo was costing me £69 pm.

Short version of what took place over about three months. Three unlimited SIM everything £20, ditched the AAISP and monitored the ups and downs of Three over Christmas and New Year, when kids would be at home and getting new phones and games consoles etc., and gave a month's notice on the landline in early January.

Never looked back! Then months later got the security camera uploading to the Cloud, which meant I needed the router which was £22pm as when I went out my internet connection (my phone) of course went with me.

Looking at the current Three deals just now made my think it's time to do a bit of negotiating, as the annual small price rises have taken me well above the phone SIM price and that newer posher and almost certainly faster modem deal at £23 looks good.

The lower quality of 4G routers is often talked about on this forum, if you look back for threads active in the last 12 months or so.

Also sending you a PM in a minute.

Edited by pluralist (Sun 18-Jul-21 01:18:29)

Heh, hopefully this won't need to be a permanent solution. I'd much prefer a lower latency and even faster speeds in the future, but if it's stable it'll be perfectly fine for the time being. Likely going to be moving house soon too (ideally somewhere there's more acceptable broadband), so having a portable internet solution that isn't tied to the address should help ease the process of moving.

I've read various experiences online and most people seem to report negative experiences with Three and 4G broadband, saying its slow speeds and intermittent. I suppose it really matters on the location at the end of the day. Luckily I don't think my local Three mast serves many properties, mostly just farmland and empty fields, so there hopefully shouldn't be much congestion or interference.

I'll probably get a suitable router off ebay, buy a cheap data pack just to test the speed and connection over a month, then if all works well, cancel my TalkTalk and transition over to an unlimited data SIM. Ideally I'd wanna test it during heavy rain or fog, but judging by todays weather I think I picked a bad time. My only concern is being stuck with an intermittent or non-functional connection during poor weather conditions, hopefully they don't affect it too much.


I really do appreciate all the information you've given me though mate, you've totally sold me on it. If you consider buying or renewing a Three package look on Topcashback or Quidco first, seems they offer around £70 in withdrawable cash after buying through their promo. Not sure if it's available for existing customers but you could always try (or sign up under an alias).

Eh its not seeming that great so far - just tethered my 200MB SIM to my PC to test it out first, and while the speeds are great it seems to frequently freeze up. Multiplayer gaming seems to be impossible, stuttering every 10 seconds, and for some reason the latency is always over 100ms. I'll admit I didn't expect much (especially for gaming), but the stability seems far worse than experiences from other people that I've read. And if what you're saying about 4G routers holds true, I'm to expect even worse than that!

I'd try different placements but I've already eaten through my SIMs remaining data. I'll have to buy one of their one-off data packs and try it out next week, possibly with an actual 4G router.

Edit: I'll say it could be the WiFi connection. I know something in the house/neighbourhood interferes with the wifi every now and again, perhaps either that was the issue or it's interfering with the 4G signal too.

Edited by thebigdolphin1 (Sun 18-Jul-21 15:33:00)

AH - gaming isn't something I do.