- VERDICT
The HTC 5G Hub is a great companion device that you can use at home and on the road. You won’t get 5G everywhere just yet but it still offers very respectable 4G speeds as well.
5G is here through Telstra and not all of the new products are smartphones. The HTC 5G Hub can help customers take advantage of the faster 5G speeds to connect to the internet at home and on the move.
If you’re lucky enough to be within the Telstra 5G footprint, you’ll enjoy speeds that are much faster than the NBN.
5G coverage is still pretty thin at the moment but the good news is that the HTC 5G Hub can still tap into Telstra’s fast 4G network and still offer remarkable speeds.
Of course, you can take this device anywhere – including right into solid 5G coverage areas in CBDs and airports – and really see some high speeds.
The device has a 5-inch touchscreen and is actually running a full version of the Android 9.0 operating system which means you can download apps directly to the device.
In fact, the HTC 5G Hub is actually a mini tablet as well which means you can view content on the display, use apps and surf the internet.
Under the hood is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 Mobile Platform
At home it can be used as a media centre to stream 4K and play online games.
For gamers, the added benefit on top of the faster speeds is the low latency which means a vastly-reduced lag to keep you competitive in the online contest.
And in terms of getting your content whether it’s a 4K movie on Netflix or through Apple TV, the HTC 5G Hub does it with ease.
For our review, the HTC 5G Hub actually outperformed our fibre to the curb 100 down/ 40 up NBN connection.
Our average download speeds with the HTC 5G Hub was around 150Mbps with about 65Mbps uploads speeds. We are just outside the 5G footprint located at the nearby Sydney Airport.
You can link up to 20 devices wirelessly to the HTC 5G Hub.
That sounds like a lot, but a larger household with all their mobile devices and laptops along with smart devices and Internet of Things (IoT) products will fill that allocation easily.
And there is room for only one physical Ethernet connection.
It also has one USB-C port which can be used to charge the device or connect a monitor.
And because it’s running Android, you can also take advantage of Google Assistant so it can be used just like a smart speaker as well.
But you’re not limited to using the HTC 5G Hub at home.
It is small enough to take with you and use it on the go.
You can take this fast internet connection with you whether you’re working on your laptop in the field or streaming movie or playing a game at a friend’s house.
If you are using it in your office it can handle corporate VPN (virtual private network) authorisation.
The HTC 5G Hub even has remote wipe capability so that your data stays safe.
At home you can keep it plugged-in, but on the move you’ve got a 7,660mAh battery that will easily last the entire day.
For our review, we unfortunately didn’t find a 5G connection near our location close to the airport or in the city.
Yet we still got very impressive speeds no matter where we used the HTC 5G Hub.
We know the 5G footprint is going to grow which means this is a future proof purchase.
The HTC 5G Hub is available now on a plan through Telstra from $70 a month with 25GB of included data. For $94 a month you’ll get 60GB and for $104 a month that data goes up to 100GB.
With the speed of 5G, it’s not going to take long to burn through your data.
With a top plan of $104 per month and only 100GB to play with, that might be suitable for a high-end road warrior but won’t go far if you wanted to give your family access to the device at home.
If you go over your included data allowance, extra data is charged in $10 per gigabyte blocks.
Users can also opt for a Peace of Mind data plan where your speed is capped at 1.5Mbps if you go over your limit rather than paying for full speed data.
The device is also available to buy outright for $984 although I couldn’t find that information on the Telstra website. At user $1000 that’s a pretty good price for a 5G device.
And if you do buy it outright you can purchase your own SIM only data plans – you just have to make sure that the Telstra data SIM card will work on its 5G network.
The HTC 5G Hub is available now.
VERDICT
The HTC 5G Hub is a great companion device that you can use at home and on the road. You won’t get 5G everywhere just yet but it still offers very respectable 4G speeds as well.
