Mobile broadband fails miserably to live up to expectations

According to the latest data from Broadband Genie, only around one in ten (11 per cent) mobile broadband users are satisfied with the speed of their mobile broadband. While around a quarter were undecided, a staggering two thirds claimed their 3G broadband wasn't fast enough.

While mobile broadband service providers have been falling over themselves to offer subsidised laptop deals, higher usage caps and ever cheaper mobile internet deals, they have overlooked the service itself. Broadband Genie is constantly inundated with complaints from consumers about 3G broadband services and as more people take the service up this is only likely to continue.

Full poll results.

Broadband Genie editor Chris Marling said: “I hope this damning figure makes the mobile broadband ISPs sit up and take notice. Until now they have been overselling a service that is not right for everyone, which will only come back to haunt them.

“The public perception of mobile broadband is often of a service that is comparable in speed and stability to fixed-line broadband, which simply isn't the case – and won't be for the foreseeable future. Exaggerated advertising and unrealistic 'up to' speed claims have given the public a rose-tinted idea of mobile broadband that the service cannot, in most cases, hope to live up to.

"However, despite its shortcomings, 3G broadband can be a fantastic product. A mobile dongle can be a great way for people to get online, both at home and on the move. For example, being able to browse the web and check emails while on the coach or train is a wonderful innovation, especially for business, while it can also be hugely useful for students who need to access the web on campus, in the library and in their halls of residence.

"But the industry needs to do more to educate consumers in the downsides too, so that the general public public can make informed decisions on whether mobile broadband is right for them. For this reason, Broadband Genie hosts a wealth of guides and FAQs, such as How fast is mobile broadband? A  guide to 3G broadband speed."