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The 5G lie: The network of the future is still slow

JacksinPA

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/tech...um=email&utm_source=newsletter&wpisrc=nl_most

We speed tested 5G phones against 4G ones. America’s new nationwide 5G networks weren’t much faster — and in some places they were slower.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock — which in 2020 actually sounds soothing — you’ve probably heard there’s a new cellphone technology called 5G. Any iPhone or Galaxy owner knows the law of Gs: Every additional G makes downloads faster. 3G sent pictures. 4G streamed video.

Apple is expected to unveil its first 5G-enabled iPhones at an event on Sept. 15. Samsung’s entire flagship lineup is now 5G-equipped. So these 2020 models are going to really fly, right?

Well, hold on just a minute. 5G may hold promise for the years ahead — but across most of America in 2020, a 5G phone does diddly squat. Testing 5G phones, I’ve been clocking download speeds that are roughly the same as on 4G LTE ones. And in some places, like inside my house and along the California highway, my 5G phones actually have been slower.
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I think much of this is marketing hype.

In defense of this article, the local telcom TV ads only say that the 5G networks have been installed in LA & NYC, not the CA highway or near his house.

There is also the controversy of all these new 5G cell sites creating interference for satellites of different types.
 
You guys do know what "G" and "LTE" means, don't you?
 
https://www.washingtonpost.com/tech...um=email&utm_source=newsletter&wpisrc=nl_most

We speed tested 5G phones against 4G ones. America’s new nationwide 5G networks weren’t much faster — and in some places they were slower.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock — which in 2020 actually sounds soothing — you’ve probably heard there’s a new cellphone technology called 5G. Any iPhone or Galaxy owner knows the law of Gs: Every additional G makes downloads faster. 3G sent pictures. 4G streamed video.

Apple is expected to unveil its first 5G-enabled iPhones at an event on Sept. 15. Samsung’s entire flagship lineup is now 5G-equipped. So these 2020 models are going to really fly, right?

Well, hold on just a minute. 5G may hold promise for the years ahead — but across most of America in 2020, a 5G phone does diddly squat. Testing 5G phones, I’ve been clocking download speeds that are roughly the same as on 4G LTE ones. And in some places, like inside my house and along the California highway, my 5G phones actually have been slower.
===================================================================
I think much of this is marketing hype.

In defense of this article, the local telcom TV ads only say that the 5G networks have been installed in LA & NYC, not the CA highway or near his house.

There is also the controversy of all these new 5G cell sites creating interference for satellites of different types.

The technology is different than 4G technology and you need many more 5G antennas for the same coverage.

The thinking now is to place 5G antennas on streetlamps rather than on the tall 4G cell towers.
 
The roll out has been slow for 5g and I doubt more than 5% of the US is covered. Without the coverage any 5G phone will be working on 4G or even older networks

The real test would have to be done in South Korea or parts of China which have rolled it out to a higher level
 
You guys do know what "G" and "LTE" means, don't you?



Practically meaningless than for designating a new model, as in "generation" for "G" that is an advancement in speed, and in this case still works on 4G that is an LTE, or "Long Term Evolution" that is nothing more than an ongoing process. 5G, though, is supposed to replace that term to make 5G something in and of itself, another meaningless change. LTE is nothing more that a dang term. So far, 5G is much ado about nothing. What a load. Big deal.
 
https://www.washingtonpost.com/tech...um=email&utm_source=newsletter&wpisrc=nl_most

We speed tested 5G phones against 4G ones. America’s new nationwide 5G networks weren’t much faster — and in some places they were slower.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock — which in 2020 actually sounds soothing — you’ve probably heard there’s a new cellphone technology called 5G. Any iPhone or Galaxy owner knows the law of Gs: Every additional G makes downloads faster. 3G sent pictures. 4G streamed video.

Apple is expected to unveil its first 5G-enabled iPhones at an event on Sept. 15. Samsung’s entire flagship lineup is now 5G-equipped. So these 2020 models are going to really fly, right?

Well, hold on just a minute. 5G may hold promise for the years ahead — but across most of America in 2020, a 5G phone does diddly squat. Testing 5G phones, I’ve been clocking download speeds that are roughly the same as on 4G LTE ones. And in some places, like inside my house and along the California highway, my 5G phones actually have been slower.
===================================================================
I think much of this is marketing hype.

In defense of this article, the local telcom TV ads only say that the 5G networks have been installed in LA & NYC, not the CA highway or near his house.

There is also the controversy of all these new 5G cell sites creating interference for satellites of different types.



You get a Siskel & Ebert. The only thing that will make 5G work is if the whole world converts to 5G and forces the "technological" advancement that is hardly worth the price of the change curve and straight cost for what little speed benefit is gotten. The only question is will your competitor have a one-up on you for using 5G than your 4G that makes it worth it to them to do so. Then there's planned obsolescence. Sweet.
 
https://www.washingtonpost.com/tech...um=email&utm_source=newsletter&wpisrc=nl_most

We speed tested 5G phones against 4G ones. America’s new nationwide 5G networks weren’t much faster — and in some places they were slower.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock — which in 2020 actually sounds soothing — you’ve probably heard there’s a new cellphone technology called 5G. Any iPhone or Galaxy owner knows the law of Gs: Every additional G makes downloads faster. 3G sent pictures. 4G streamed video.

Apple is expected to unveil its first 5G-enabled iPhones at an event on Sept. 15. Samsung’s entire flagship lineup is now 5G-equipped. So these 2020 models are going to really fly, right?

Well, hold on just a minute. 5G may hold promise for the years ahead — but across most of America in 2020, a 5G phone does diddly squat. Testing 5G phones, I’ve been clocking download speeds that are roughly the same as on 4G LTE ones. And in some places, like inside my house and along the California highway, my 5G phones actually have been slower.
===================================================================
I think much of this is marketing hype.

In defense of this article, the local telcom TV ads only say that the 5G networks have been installed in LA & NYC, not the CA highway or near his house.

There is also the controversy of all these new 5G cell sites creating interference for satellites of different types.

5G is great... but.....depends on which version.

Low Band 5G will give speeds of 30 to 250 MB, which is higher than 4G. This system has/will the similar coverage and range as 4G.
Mid Band 5G will give speeds 100 to 900 MB, which is much higher than 4G. Most countries will use this system, rather than Low Band, but the coverage/range is only a couple of KM, which means you need more antennas.
High Band 5G is the one all the nerds want.. 1+ GB a second. However the range is crap, cant really pass through walls and you have to deploy even more cell towers.

The US companies are deploying all 3 for some reason, instead of staying with one standard.. The one you have seen in tests is of course High Band, but most will be using the 2 others.

Now do they interfere with satellites? Dunno.

But the real scam is promoting this for mobile phones. YES! I got 300 mb/sec download... but only 10 GB a month.. so what the hell is the point? Now I do see 5G being great for rural areas where fiber is too expensive to push out or between towns. But for my mobile phone.. 4G is more than enough as long as I cant get a reasonably priced unlimited contract.
 
This was already pointed out, but you're only going to get 5G speeds if you're near a 5G tower, which few people in America are. It will take a while to build the infrastructure and we're already behind many other countries. Having a 5G phone does not make it automatically faster.
 
Well the internal device transceivers are capable of operating up to 10Gbit/s. That's a pretty tough engineering challenge.
The infrastructure has to follow. I remember years ago, a friend would show me mock-up pictures of the super information highway, where everyone would be able to see all kinds of pictures and even live videos everywhere about everything. He would say, do you believe that crap?
 
Practically meaningless than for designating a new model, as in "generation" for "G" that is an advancement in speed, and in this case still works on 4G that is an LTE, or "Long Term Evolution" that is nothing more than an ongoing process. 5G, though, is supposed to replace that term to make 5G something in and of itself, another meaningless change. LTE is nothing more that a dang term. So far, 5G is much ado about nothing. What a load. Big deal.

This is what I am getting at, these are all marketing buzzwords and it should surprise no one that 5G is not all that fast yet.
 
This is what I am getting at, these are all marketing buzzwords and it should surprise no one that 5G is not all that fast yet.

I wonder how long the "line" will be.
 
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5G will be slow for a while. They have to build the infrastructure for it.
 
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