Heathrow Express rolls out 2Mbps wi-fi

All Heathrow Express trains have been wi-fi-enabled to provide passengers with broadband speeds of up to 2Mbps for the 15 to 20 minute journey.

The service, providing a direct link between Paddington station and Heathrow Airport, offers passengers a broadband connection during the entire trip, including a 6km tunnel.

However, speeds of up to 8Mbps - promised last November - are not available.

Jay Saw, chief commercial officer at Nomad Digital, which supplies network operator T-Mobile, told silicon.com the wi-fi network could theoretically support speeds of up to 32Mbps but that would mean higher prices for customers.

Bandwidths of more than 2Mbps are not necessary for the simple email and internet applications most customers will be using on the Heathrow Express network, said Saw.

Wi-fi users need to buy a T-Mobile HotSpot access card to get online, with rates starting at 75p for 10 minutes. An hour's connection costs £5.

The card can then be used on the Heathrow Express or at more than 400 T-Mobile HotSpot locations within London.

The Heathrow Express' on-board wi-fi uses a 3.5G HSDPA cellular connection or WiMax - when in a tunnel - to connect the train back to the T-Mobile network.

You what…?

Bust through tech jargon with silicon.com's Cheat Sheets.

Train operator GNER already offers on-board wi-fi using a combination of a satellite link and mobile 3G/GPRS networks, which enables 100 per cent connectivity – even when going through tunnels too.

Wi-fi on the London to Brighton train route is also provided by T-Mobile and uses Nomad technology and WiMax for a backhaul connection.

Click here to see photos of the Heathrow Express wi-fi in action.