Zong launches Z HomeFi, a 5G home broadband service with plans from Rs4,500 a month
Zong says it is Pakistan's first 5G fixed wireless home internet. It needs no fibre, but the router costs Rs22,000 and every bundle has a data cap.
Zong launched Z HomeFi on 8 October, a home broadband service that runs over its 5G network instead of fibre or a copper line. The operator calls it Pakistan's first 5G fixed wireless access service. The cheapest way in costs Rs26,500 in the first month: Rs22,000 for the router and Rs4,500 for a 10 Mbps bundle with 100 GB of data.
Bundles and the router
Zong sells 12 prepaid bundles, each valid for 30 days, with speeds of up to 10, 20, 30 or 50 Mbps and monthly data of 100, 250 or 500 GB. Prices run from Rs4,500 to Rs11,000 for the top plan of 50 Mbps and 500 GB. Zong says every price includes taxes, GST at 19.5 percent and advance income tax at 15 percent. The 5G indoor router supports WiFi 6 and up to 64 connected users on a single band, and carries a two year warranty. Customers install it themselves.
The service is not unlimited. Zong sends alerts at 50, 80 and 100 percent of the data allowance, and the connection stops at 100 percent until the customer recharges or adds a bundle. The router is locked to the address where it was registered, so moving house means filing a relocation request. Zong also warns that speeds vary with signal strength, interference, where the router sits, congestion and distance from the tower.
Where it works
Zong lists 21 cities, among them Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Faisalabad, Peshawar and Quetta, as well as smaller places such as Sahiwal, Kasur, Jhelum and Topi. Each order starts with a feasibility check on the customer's address against Zong's 5G coverage list. Orders go through Zong's customer service centres only: the customer completes biometric verification, pays at the counter and takes the router home. Franchise sales are not available yet, and Zong plans to add them.
“The true value of technology is measured by how it improves people's everyday lives.”
Against fibre
Where fibre is already on the street, it wins on price per gigabyte by a wide margin. TechJuice put PTCL's 40 Mbps fibre plan at Rs3,350 a month with 2,500 GB, and its 100 Mbps plan at Rs6,900 with 4,000 GB. Zong's cheapest bundle works out to Rs45 per GB. Fixed wireless is aimed at households fibre has not reached. Within reach of PTCL's network, the Rs3,350 plan carries 25 times the data of Zong's Rs4,500 bundle.
