Netgear Nighthawk M5 Review

For much of 5G's life in Australia, there's been very little choice when it comes to 5G pocket WiFi modems. Telstra has been the only telco to offer them so far, and it's typically only ranged one model at a time. 

That's no longer the case however, with Telstra now stocking the Netgear Nighthawk M5 portable modem alongside its home brand 5G Wi-Fi Pro. But the Nighthawk 5G isn't just the second 5G hotspot available on Telstra, it's also the priciest option.

Outright, the Nighthawk M5 will set you back $799. If you'd prefer to get it on a plan, you're looking at $33.29 per month on a 24-month term, on top of your base plan fees. For comparison, the Telstra 5G Wi-Fi Pro will set you back $599, which is already pretty damn expensive for a modem.

When we reviewed the Telstra 5G Wi-Fi Pro last year, we said "there's little case for getting one today", a sentiment that still rings true six months later. So does spending $200 more on a Nighthawk M5 do anything to shift that?

5G Face Off

It's impossible to look at the Nighthawk M5 without comparing it to the Telstra 5G Wi-Fi Pro. After all, they're very similar products that serve the same fundamental purpose. They're even powered by the same Qualcomm modem.

When it comes to performance, there isn't exactly a clear answer as to which modem is better. In my testing, I found the Nighthawk M5 obtained better download speeds with a clearer line of sight to my local 5G tower, while the Telstra 5G Wi-Fi Pro dealt better with obstacles.

In my apartment for example, the Telstra 5G Wi-Fi Pro was easily able to obtain speeds over 450Mbps, while the Nighthawk M5 mostly floated between 250Mbps and 300Mbps. Outdoors, the Nighthawk M5 edged out the Telstra 5G Wi-Fi Pro. When directly in front of a tower, the Nighthawk M5 was typically achieving speed tests over 700Mbps, while the Telstra 5G Wi-Fi Pro floated around 650Mbps.

It's honestly hard to complain about the results of any of these speed tests, they're large improvements over what most of us can get from the NBN. But given the premium price tags, it's worth understanding exactly what each modem is capable of. Personally, I'd take more reliable performance when dealing with obstacles over pure speed as it's not exactly realistic to expect unobstructed access to a 5G tower.

While the pair of portable hotspots share the same modem, the Telstra 5G Wi-Fi Pro is somewhat more future-proof thanks to support for mmWave 5G. mmWave is an upcoming form of 5G that complements Sub 6, the current technology Australian 5G networks are built on.

mmWave 5G uses extremely high frequencies starting from 26GHz. While mmWave is the fastest 5G technology - potentially reaching speeds over 4Gbps, it has the shortest range and can have issues penetrating buildings. It also doesn't currently exist in Australia. Telcos won't be able to bid for spectrum access until April, and then they'll still need to build their network. It's unlikely we'll see mmWave networks go live until late 2021 or early 2022, and even then, coverage will be limited in the short term.

mmWave connectivity itself isn't a reason to buy the Telstra 5G Wi-Fi Pro over the Nighthawk M5, but it is a weird omission given it is the pricier product. You shouldn't buy a product based on future potential, but it is nice to know that the Telstra 5G Wi-Fi Pro will be able to connect to mmWave networks when they're widely available in a couple of years. Hotspots aren't something that people replace every few years, so it's disappointing Netgear didn't include mmWave support in the Nighthawk M5 - especially given the price-tag.

Battery is another key point of difference. On the spec sheet, the Nighthawk M5 is said to last up to 13 hours. In our testing, we found this was more like ten. For comparison, we found the Telstra 5G Wi-Fi Pro offered about seven hours of real world usage.

Performance and battery aside, the Nighthawk M5 and Telstra 5G Wi-Fi Pro are pretty similar products. Both have a gigabit ethernet port so you can wire them into your home or office network (although I should mention it's far too easy to dislodge an ethernet cable from the M5, which resulted in a few too many unexpected outages in my testing). Both support a similar amount of devices over their own WiFi (32 for the Nighthawk M5, 30 for the 5G Wi-Fi Pro). Both get very similar 4G speeds when you don't have access to a 5G network. The Telstra 5G Wi-Fi Pro is simply just $200 cheaper.

Netgear Nighthawk M5 - Final Thoughts

No matter what model you're considering, a 5G hotspot simply isn't worth it for most during this stage of the 5G rollout. It's an expensive investment that won't consistently provide a benefit due to the infancy of our networks. Sure, networks will get better over the coming months and years, but 5G hotspot prices will also go down during that time.

If you're considering the Nighthawk M5, it will add $32.29 per month onto your monthly Telstra bill. For comparison, Telstra's fastest 4G portable modem - the Nighthawk M2 - adds $16 per month to your bill. Alternatively, there's the 4GX Wi-Fi Pro, which only adds $5 per month to your bill. And let's be real, Telstra's 4G network is still excellent. I can comfortably get speeds of over 200Mbps in metro areas.

While some may want to use the Nighthawk M5 as an NBN alternative, it isn't necessarily a great option - even if you've already got 5G at your home or office. Telstra's mobile broadband plans max out at 200GB, and that will cost you $108.29 per month after you factor in modem costs. While some could make do with 200GB, the value equation just isn't there.

For comparison, unlimited data 5G home internet plans from SpinTel (powered by the Optus 5G network) start at $70 per month without additional modem fees. Telstra has an invite-only 5G home internet plan billed at $85 per month with 500GB. Of course, in both cases, the modem requires constant mains power, so you can't just use it on the go.

At the end of the day, the Nighthawk M5 is too expensive for its own good. $799 is simply too much money to spend on a 5G portable hotspot at this point of the rollout, especially when it's not even best in class. While we still wouldn't recommend rushing out to buy Telstra's 5G Wi-Fi Pro, it's a better value product and faster in situations where you don’t have line of sight to a tower.

If you need portable internet on the go, a Telstra 4G hotspot like the Netgear Nighthawk M2 is a smarter choice. If you want 5G internet for home, look for a dedicated 5G home internet plan from SpinTel or Optus rather than mobile broadband. It's exciting to see more choice in the portable 5G modem space, but there's still a way to go until a device like the Nighthawk M5 will make sense for the average consumer.

Alex Choros

Managing Editor + Group Telco Editor | X | Instagram | Threads | LinkedIn

Alex Choros is the Managing Editor of WhistleOut Australia and an award-winning journalist. He's been writing about consumer technology for over a decade and is an expert on the Australian telco sector, to the point where he knows far too many phone and internet plans by heart. In addition to leading the WhistleOut editorial team, Alex is responsible for ruining the office Sonos with his troubled taste in music.

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