I’m from the Chicago area, so rural living isn’t something I could identify with until now. We moved from the Chicago area to the Des Moines area, and life generally didn’t change much. Everything available in Chicago was available in Des Moines, especially fast internet. But now, we’ve chosen to move further out into a rural area where the best available internet was CenturyLink’s 15Mbps. I have to admit, living with these speeds has been a challenge, so when Verizon Home LTE became available, I jumped on it.
Verizon Home LTE is a home internet service available to rural customers only. The service isn’t available everywhere just yet, and you can find out if your area is covered on Verizon’s website. It’s important to note that this service isn’t meant for suburban or city areas; only rural areas qualify for this service. Read on for the full review of Verizon Home LTE internet, a Techaeris Editor’s Choice award winner.
It’s important to note that Verizon Home LTE may not be available in every area. We have no control over Verizon’s services, and you should check Verizon’s website to see if this service covers your area. It’s also important to note that performance may vary by region and signal, so our experience may not be yours.
This review of Verizon Home LTE is our own experience, and we are paying the monthly fee. Verizon did not provide this service to us.
UPDATE April 6, 2022
It has been over a year since we did our Verizon Home LTE review, and here we are with an update. I stand by my review below and still think Verizon Home LTE is an excellent option for rural users. But now that I’ve been using it, I have found that the speeds supplied are no longer adequate for my use. So I have updated my thoughts below and updated the score and overall score.
As a reviewer, I test multiple devices consistently. This service has been struggling for the past few months to provide enough speed for multiple connections. I’ve also had many issues with the 2.4GHz network not connecting to any IoT devices or not being found at all.
I know Verizon has a newer router available for this service, but we have not been able to test it. For now, we are moving to Starlink. Verizon Home LTE is an excellent option for light to moderate users; I don’t think it’s a viable option for heavy users and heavy gamers.
Specifications
Verizon Home LTE has the following features and specifications:
- Up to 5x faster speeds than required for HD video streaming
- Uses the Verizon 4G LTE network
- Save more if you are already a Verizon customer
- Simple setup through the Verizon app
- Monday-Sunday Verizon assistance is available
What’s In The Box
- Verizon Home LTE router
- Power Supply
- Ethernet cable (optional)
- Manuals and Documentation
Design
The design of the Verizon Home LTE router is relatively bland. It’s a basic white box with Verizon branding on it, and it is very lightweight. The back of the router has the following:
- Antenna
- SIM Card Slot
- WAN Port
- x2 LAN Ports
- Power Port
- Reset Button
Around the front, you have only one button and some LED lights:
- WPS Button
- WPS LED
- System LED
The router’s bottom has a nice rubber ring that works as a foot to keep the router from slipping. Overall, the Verizon Home LTE router isn’t anything special to look at, but it’s not ugly. It should fit in nicely with anyone’s decor.
Setup
Setup of the Verizon Home LTE router takes mere minutes. The longest part of this setup was running an ethernet cable to a Netgear 6-port switch that I set up where most of my wired gear is.
The first thing you need to do is position the router. This may take some trial and error as the Verizon signal may be stronger in some places over others. I didn’t want to place the router too far away from where we use the majority of our devices, so it didn’t take long to find a spot. Here’s what Verizon suggests when positioning your Verizon Home LTE router:
- Place the router in a central area.
- Keep the router away from metal obstructions and away from direct sunlight.
- Keep the router away from 802.11g or 20MHz only Wi-Fi devices, 2.4GHz computer peripherals, Bluetooth devices, cordless phones, transformers, heavy-duty motors, fluorescent lights, microwave ovens, refrigerators, and other industrial equipment to prevent signal interference or loss.
Once you have the router in position, you can visit the Verizon site for setup instructions or scan the QR code on the box. I used my iPhone 12 Pro Max to visit the URL, and it immediately opened the Verizon app and launched the setup.
The Verizon app gives you step-by-step instructions, and they are straightforward to follow. It took all of 5-minutes to finish the setup. Once you’re set up, you can start using your new service that easily.
Overall, Verizon Home LTE and the router are straightforward to set up and use.
Performance
Once you get through setup, you will have two different networks. One uses Verizon’s 4G LTE, and the other uses Verizon’s 5G network. I found that both networks provided the same download speeds, and one was not better than the other, at least in my area. That could be different in the area you install your internet.
Previously, the only provider available in our area was CenturyLink. The only available speed on CenturyLink was 15Mbps download, and I was lucky ever to get that speed. My CenturyLink speeds were more in the range of 8-13Mbps. The upload speeds were horrid on CenturyLink, less than 1Mbps.
Verizon Home LTE promises 25Mbps download with bursts of up to 50Mbps. I have been using Verizon Home LTE for 3-days now, and I am consistently getting download speeds of 30-45Mbps. That’s both wired and wireless. Now, that’s not mind-blowing if you’re in the city or suburbs. I was getting an 800Mbps download when we lived in Des Moines, so 30-45Mbps is paltry. But, when your options are limited in these rural areas, this is very impressive.
The download speeds on Verizon have allowed me to add more devices to the network. The upload speeds will also allow me to upload 4K YouTube videos faster. A 10-minute 4K video would take over 24-hours to upload on CenturyLink.
Overall, the performance of Verizon Home LTE is excellent and is sure to be a hit with rural users.
Price/Value
Verizon is charging US$60 a month for this new service, and if you’re already a Verizon Wireless customer and use Auto-Pay, you can get this for US$40 a month. We were paying CenturyLink US$65 a month for a 15Mbps download. We are now paying US$40 a month for better speeds. The value is undeniable in our case.
Wrap Up
Verizon Home LTE may not be available in your area, and if it is, it may or may not work as well as it does in my area. Given that we’re only able to get one service out here and a crappy one at that, this service is a godsend. While I will always miss my Gigabit speeds, what Verizon is offering here for rural users is excellent. Verizon offers a 14-day trial period if you want to try it out first and see if it works for you. If you send the router back and cancel, there may be a restocking fee.
Verizon Home LTE is a solid alternative for rural users, and we recommend you at least look into it.
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Last Updated on April 6, 2022.
