T-Mobile Launches Heathrow Express Wi-Fi HotSpot

Heathrow Express and T-Mobile now offer seamless Wi-Fi connection between London and Heathrow Airport.

All Heathrow Express trains have been wi-fi-enabled, allowing passengers to send emails and use the internet, with broadband speeds of up to 2Mbps, for the 15 to 20 minute journey between Paddington station and Heathrow Airport.

The service, which is supported by a wireless mobile network designed and installed by Nomad Digital, provides broadband connection throughout the trip, even when the train is passing through the 6km tunnel section of the journey.

It uses a 3.5G HSDPA cellular connection or WiMax when in the tunnel, to connect the train back to the T-Mobile network

The wi-fi network could theoretically support speeds of up to 32Mbps but this would mean higher charges for service users who have to buy a T-Mobile HotSpot access card to use the service.

The access card is priced at 75p for 10 minutes, while an hour’s connection costs £5.

The card can be used on the Heathrow Express and over 400 T-Mobile HotSpot locations within London, including Starbucks coffee shops, Borders bookshops and some hotels.