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I was originally sceptical of the Helium Hotspot being profitable, so any statement I make here could be equally inaccurate.
Yesterday, Helium announced the next phase of their people-powered network with intention of becoming the first consumer-owned 5G network in the world.
Helium FreedomFi 5G Gateway
Similar to the LoRaWAN Helium Hotspots, users will be able to buy a FreedomFi Gateway that pairs with 5G antennas and is compatible with the Helium Network. The FreedomFi Gateway will then reward you in HNT for providing 5G connectivity.
The new gateways will be for the US only at first, and they will operate on the CBRS spectrum band utilising the 3550 MHz to 3700 MHz bands (Sub 6) in the United States. CBRS is important because it allows the company to deploy 5G mobile networks without having to acquire spectrum licenses. The need for spectrum licenses could make the launch of international models a little harder.
This immediately sounds like it will have more commercial success than a LoRaWAN network. There are not a lot of commercial devices utilising LoRaWAN yet, but plenty using 5G.
So you would think running a Helium 5G Hotspot is a guaranteed way to make a lot of HNT cryptocurrency.
However, there are some caveats.
How much does the FreedomFi Gateway cost?
For a start, the cost of the initial FreedomFi Gateway set-up. It is not the gateway itself that will cost a lot of money (just $500) but the 5G radio you need to buy for it. You will have options to select different powered radios (a bit like the Helium antennas, but more expensive), and these are expected to vary from $500 to $5000 per CBRS cellular radio. FreedomFi Gateways will allow you to plug in or more CBRS radios to maximise data offload throughput and your resulting HNT mining rewards. So it is going to be a massive upfront cost.
How much HNT will the FreedomFi Gateway mine?
Then there is the issue of the amount of HNT you will be rewarded. Early adopters have done well from Helium, but the halving arrives in August. While there are still only 29,500 hotspots online, there are over 200K pre-ordered waiting to be shipped to customers. They are currently forecasting over 600,000 Hotspots in the next 18 months. So the HNT rewards will halve, and then they will be split by 10x or more users.
On a more positive note, the Helium 5G network should have commercial applications immediately, so it is likely to drive up the cost of HNT considerably (assuming a successful rollout). Because the 5G hotspots will have more potential clients from the start, they should have more chances of earning HNT than the LoRaWAN alternatives.
So overall, it sounds like it could be a risky investment, but I said you would get an ROI last time and was quickly proved wrong. So clearly, I know nothing.
I am James, a UK-based tech enthusiast and the Editor and Owner of Mighty Gadget, which I’ve proudly run since 2007. Passionate about all things technology, my expertise spans from computers and networking to mobile, wearables, and smart home devices.
As a fitness fanatic who loves running and cycling, I also have a keen interest in fitness-related technology, and I take every opportunity to cover this niche on my blog. My diverse interests allow me to bring a unique perspective to tech blogging, merging lifestyle, fitness, and the latest tech trends.
In my academic pursuits, I earned a BSc in Information Systems Design from UCLAN, before advancing my learning with a Master’s Degree in Computing. This advanced study also included Cisco CCNA accreditation, further demonstrating my commitment to understanding and staying ahead of the technology curve.
I’m proud to share that Vuelio has consistently ranked Mighty Gadget as one of the top technology blogs in the UK. With my dedication to technology and drive to share my insights, I aim to continue providing my readers with engaging and informative content.
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This website was a waste of my time. The entire article was basically you telling us you don’t know jack. It was clearly a self serving masterpiece of garbage. Thanks for nothing
If that’s how you feel, fair enough.
This was posted back in April, as soon as the Helium 5G Hotspot was announced, there was not exactly a lot of information to work off.
I highlighted how much it costs plus additional costs and discussed the risks of decreased rewards as more hotspots come online.
From my experience, normal Helium hotspots have significantly reduced earnings since April, so my words of warning appear to have been accurate.
For me, I am not sure I’d want to spend thousands of dollars on a new 5G hotspot when there have been significant delays with the existing helium hotspots combined with reduced earning. But as I said, I was wrong about my initial review of Helium, and I could be wrong here. The hope is that HNT will increase in value 10x or more, and this will make everything much more profitable.
At the end of the day, this is a piece of cryptocurrency mining technology, if I could accurately predict the future technology like this, I wouldn’t be blogging for a living.
This article actually usefull information. After the failing in 1st stage. Doubt anyone will spend thousands on this stage. I definitely won’t. But well i may be wrong and miss out the next boom. I hope I wrong because this basically a scam network where millions of people get scam for their pre order. So far no one get refund from those manufacturers as I heard. Sad for this network ngl.
I got my refund way back. Ordered 5 miners. I waited 6 extra months after the original ship date. Messaged them for a refund and got it within a week or two