ConnectNYC vs T-Mobile 5G · verified 26 July 2026
Your home internet is last in line.
That is not our characterisation. T-Mobile’s own terms say Home Internet gets “the same network prioritization as Mobile Wireless Heavy Data Users,” and that above 1.2TB you are “prioritized last on the network.” Three more things their $35 headline leaves out are below.
From T-Mobile’s own pages
Four things the ad doesn’t lead with.
All read on 26 July 2026, all on t-mobile.com.
1. You share the network with the street
Home Internet rides the same towers as the phones around you, at the same priority as heavy mobile data users, by T-Mobile’s own published terms. Capacity your apartment needs at 7pm is capacity the block is also using.
We built a fixed network for buildings. Capacity is engineered per node against the households connected to it, and we add capacity as a node fills.
2. The $35 is really $50, or $60
$35 needs AutoPay and a T-Mobile voice line on the account. With AutoPay alone it is $50. With neither, about $60. The advertised number assumes you are already a phone customer.
Ours is one number. $89, $119, $149 — no autopay condition, no bundled phone line, nothing to qualify for.
3. Plus taxes and fees
Every price T-Mobile advertises for Home Internet is quoted “plus taxes and fees.” What lands on the bill is not the number on the page.
We add nothing. No fees, no surcharges, no taxes — on internet or on home phone. The price shown is the price billed.
4. No speed they’ll stand behind
T-Mobile’s own pages publish different speed ranges for the same plans, and performance varies with your tower and the hour. There is no speed commitment attached to the service.
Ours is in writing. Every plan is a download and an upload figure, latency around 10 ms, and a written NYC Speed Guarantee that credits you if we miss.
Side by side
Entry plan against entry plan.
Each company’s own published figures, 26 July 2026.
| At the entry tier | ConnectNYC Essential | T-Mobile Home Internet Rely |
|---|---|---|
| Network priority | A fixed network built for buildings | Same priority as heavy mobile data users; last on the network above 1.2TB |
| Published upload | 50 Mbps | No committed figure; varies by tower and hour |
| Taxes and fees | None. Price shown is price billed | Quoted “plus taxes and fees” |
| Conditions on the price | None | Lowest price needs AutoPay and a T-Mobile voice line |
| Speed commitment | Written guarantee on download and upload, with credits | None advertised |
| Typical latency | About 10 ms, published | On their label for your address |
| Equipment | Bring your own router, or buy ours once for $149 | Gateway included; their terms say return it undamaged or pay up to $370 |
| Monthly price | $89 | $35 with AutoPay and a voice line; $50 with AutoPay alone |
| Getting started | $150 install in an apartment | $35 device connection charge, self-installed |
| Contract, termination, data caps | None, none, none | None, none, none |
Where they win
Two things we won’t pretend about.
They are cheaper and easier to start. $35 or $50 against our $89, and a $35 gateway you plug in yourself instead of a $150 scheduled install. If the monthly number decides it, or you are on a short lease, that is a real advantage and we are not going to argue you out of it.
They reach the whole city. We serve W 57th to W 110th Street, Central Park West to the Hudson. Everywhere else, they are an option and we are not.
Inside those blocks, the trade is simple: pay more per month, and stop sharing your evening with every phone on the avenue.
The short version
A line of your own.
5G home internet is mobile capacity sold to a stationary address. It is a genuinely good deal when the towers are quiet. The question is what happens when they are not — and T-Mobile has already answered that in writing.
We own the whole path instead: the IP space, the transport, the radios, the cabling in your hallway. Both speed numbers published, latency around 10 ms, one price with nothing attached. How the network is built →
Thirty seconds. Real answer.
See if your building is covered.
Live now on the Upper West Side — W 57th to 110th St.