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Note: TalkTalk Mobile is no longer accepting new customers or renewing contracts. If you're a current TalkTalk Mobile customer you'll be given the option to move to O2 at the end of your current contract.
The information below was written when TalkTalk was still fully operating as a mobile network, but should still be broadly accurate for existing TalkTalk customers.
TalkTalk is an MVNO that currently uses Vodafone, but it should soon be switching to O2 as part of a new multi-year deal.
At the moment it only offers 3G, but once it makes the move to O2 you’ll be able to get 4G as well.
Given that TalkTalk will soon be using O2’s infrastructure we can already see what its 4G coverage will be like.
O2 currently has 4G coverage for over 97% of the UK population outdoors and aims to have 98% indoor population coverage as soon as possible, so TalkTalk will be jumping on board with a well-established network and will presumably deliver the same level of coverage.
|
Pros |
Cons |
|---|---|
|
Allows tethering |
No 4G yet |
|
Low prices |
Low data limits |
Our Rating
TalkTalk has excellent 2G and 3G coverage, and once it switches to O2 it will have solid 4G coverage too, with over 97% of the population covered at time of writing.
Use TalkTalk’s coverage checker below to find out more about TalkTalk 4G coverage in your area, including signal strengths and details on both indoor and outdoor coverage.
|
Network Type |
Coverage by population |
|---|---|
|
4G |
97% (once it switches to O2) |
|
3G |
98% |
|
2G |
99% |
TalkTalk doesn’t currently offer 4G, but it soon will and it will share coverage with O2, which currently has 4G in thousands of UK towns, cities and villages.
Towns and cities with 4G from O2 include but are by no means limited to: Antrim, Bradford, Birmingham, Bournemouth, Bridgend, Brighton, Burnley, Castleford, Coleraine, Coventry, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Leicester, Leigh, Liverpool, Livingston, Manchester, Newcastle, Sheffield, London, Macclesfield, Newtownabbey, Nottingham, Nuneaton, Pontypool, Poole, Portsmouth, Reading, St Albans, Sittingbourne, Southampton and Tamworth.
Recent locations to get an O2 4G upgrade include: Porlock, plus Ben Nevis, along with hundreds of other Scottish locations. Over 180 locations in Norfolk have recently had an O2 4G upgrade as well, and Aldeburgh will also soon be getting O2 4G. So TalkTalk will have 4G in these places too once it switches to O2.
Currently TalkTalk doesn’t offer any 4G at all, but once it switches to O2’s infrastructure it will use standard 4G, which is around 5 times faster than a typical 3G network.
Based on O2’s speeds, TalkTalk’s average 4G download speed is likely to around 18.48Mbit/sec, while its average 4G upload speed will probably be roughly 9.40Mbit/sec. That’s not as fast as some rivals, but it’s still very speedy, and should allow for smooth streaming, downloading and web browsing on your phone.
O2 (and by extension soon TalkTalk) uses just the 800MHz band for 4G. The 800MHz band is well suited to delivering coverage everywhere in the UK, as it’s long range, so it can travel a long way between mobile masts, making it suited to rural environments, and it’s also good at penetrating walls and other solid objects, making it a good fit for cities too.
You can find in depth details of this band and others in our 4G frequencies guide.
TalkTalk was offering a range of both Pay Monthly and SIM Only 3G plans, however it's currently working on an 'exciting new mobile phone service' and temporarily isn't offering any plans.
It's not clear what the upcoming selection of plans will offer, but for reference the plans below are what TalkTalk was offering until recently.
|
Tethering |
✔ |
|---|---|
|
Max Data Allowance |
4GB |
|
Contract Length |
24 Months |
TalkTalk’s Pay Monthly plans were all 24 months long and they topped out at 4GB of monthly data. They allow tethering, and you can use as much of your monthly data towards it as you want.
|
Tethering |
✔ |
|---|---|
|
Max Data Allowance |
2GB |
|
Contract Length |
1 or 12 Months |
TalkTalk’s SIM Only plans were mostly 12 months long, but there was also a 30-day option. Plans top out at 2GB of data and you can use any or all of that for tethering.
TalkTalk doesn’t currently offer any Data Only plans.
TalkTalk currently doesn’t offer any Pay As You Go services.
TalkTalk lets you roam across EU and EEA countries thanks to the European Commission's recent Roam Like At Home initiative. That means you can use your minutes, texts and data at no extra cost in:
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, Spain and Sweden.
Right now we can’t recommend TalkTalk as a 4G network, because it isn’t one, so only opt for it if you’re happy with lower speeds - and even then you'll have to wait for the network to relaunch. 4G is set to arrive, possibly before the end of the year, but there’s not yet any confirmed date.
Low data limits and a lack of inclusive roaming beyond Europe also disappoints, but prices are at least fairly low and you can use your data to tether.
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