Oh the irony: T-Mobile launches internet backup plans for businesses on the day the company suffered its worst outage of 2024
- T-Mobile’s backup solution includes free data passes for emergencies
- Each plan offers 130 GB per month, plus three free 130 GB passes per year
- No hidden costs with T-Mobile’s Home and Business subscriptions
T-Mobile has unveiled enhanced Internet Backup plans for both home and small businesses, which aim to provide users with a reliable and affordable 5G network in the event of a primary network outage.
The irony of this launch, however, is that it occurred on the same day the company suffered its largest outage of 2024, disrupting service for users in several regions across the United States.
The outage left millions of users without a connection for almost five hours and confirmed the need for a reliable backup solution.
Backup solution for downtime
According to T-Mobile, the Home and Small Business Internet Backup plans provide users with more robust tools to maintain connectivity during ISP outages. These plans are not intended to replace, but rather complement, traditional cable or fiber internet services.
Each plan includes 130GB of 5G data per month, which is enough to keep most households or small businesses online for up to seven days during outages. The latest update introduces three additional free 130GB data passes per year, which can be activated during extended outages of three days or until data is used up.
The T-Mobile 5G Gateway can be installed in less than 15 minutes, ensuring a quick transition to backup connectivity when primary services go offline. These plans come with no hidden fees, meaning the 5G gateway comes at no additional cost.
T-Mobile is also offering the Nimble Champ Pro 20k 65W portable power station at a discounted price of $49.99 for new customers to keep devices and the 5G gateway online during power outages.
T-Mobile’s massive outage in November put a spotlight on the vulnerabilities of even the largest telecom providers. While the company has long promoted its 5G network as a robust and reliable option, the extent of this service disruption reminded customers of the possibility of unexpected outages. This incident also highlights how crucial internet access is in an era when remote work, virtual learning and online business operations are routine.