4 minute read
Issue Focus: Understanding 5G
The The Realities Realities of 5G of 5G
By Bjorn Jensen
We see the commercials. T-Mobile claims “Nationwide 5G” and Verizon says “5G Just Got Real.” We all might remember how AT&T got slapped for introducing 5G too early. Many of us in the know are skeptical but may not know why. So, let’s talk about some of the common misconceptions about 5G, what the reality is, and if it’s time to get that new phone.
5G requires a new transmission infrastructure that includes thousands of cell towers and tens of thousands of antennas. As with any rollout that requires a humungous infrastructure update, 5G will only be available initially in cities and places where lots of folks congregate. How many places have you been where you don’t even get 4G today? Most carriers have even stopped showing the generation of LTE that you are connected to and just now show “LTE” on a signal strength bar.
So, should you get that new phone with 5G capability? Maybe not so fast. If you have 5G capability in your area, certainly you might want to upgrade. But many do not actually have 5G in their area outside of commercial space, if even then. Chances are that if you are in a rural area, you won’t see 5G for some time.
Ookla, the company that gave us SpeedTest. net to test our internet connections released a 5G Map that tracks 5G rollouts in cities across the globe. Check this out to see if your area will be receiving 5G capabilities any time soon. Another misconception is that all 5G phones will react the same way to the 5G rollout. Some mobile carriers use 5G high-band spectrum called millimeter wavelength (mmWave) that allows about 28 GHz of frequency, which is considerably faster than the 700 MHz to 2500 MHz frequency used for 4G.
Other carriers have built their 5G networks on top of the 4G or LTE networks to give connectivity without speed. Low band, which operates below 1 GHz and reaches speeds of 250 Mbps and broad reach (carriers can space the tower further apart) is also considered 5G. With so many pieces of the spectrum used for 5G, make sure you get a phone that supports what is available in your area, which can be a really difficult choice without some research.
In its early 5G efforts, AT&T launched a 5G E network that experts called a spiffed-up version of the existing LTE network. The National Advertising Review Board eventually recommended the company stop using 5G terminology saying it was misleading consumers. In July 2020, AT&T launched its 5G+ service in parts of 35 cities service using the mmWave spectrum. Again, buyers beware – customers can get faster speeds yet with far less broad coverage.
The mid-band of 5G, between 2.5 and 6 GHz, is called the sweet spot; it has a geographic reach and is faster than low-band. Still, for the highest performance with top speeds of 10-Gbps, carriers will need mmWave. The tradeoff is mmWave is less reliable over long distances, and the signal is easily interrupted by physical barriers and even rain. To make mmWave practical to use, carriers will need to put many small access points in a plethora of places instead of just using a few wellplaced cell towers. After years of promises, the FCC has held several 5G auctions for the spectrum and will likely have more to stimulate the adoption of 5G. 5G is not just for mobile. It’s low-latency speed will initially enable things like remote surgeries, autonomous driving, and other new technologies. It will be the backbone of the IoT including sensors, thermostats, internetconnected cars, and other gadgets. Yet the roll-out will take years to complete nationwide.
We’re also seeing companies that purchase their little piece of the spectrum to create private 5G networks to replace their Wi-Fi networks. We’re going to see huge leaps in innovation and implementation of those technologies as 5G saturation occurs.
5G has been the most discussed topic at the Mobile World Congress, the mobile industry’s biggest trade show, for the past five years. Finally, “2020 was to be the year of 5G,” but with social and financial uncertainty, the spotlight has fallen on legacy technologies to deliver life’s “new normal.”
We can enjoy a flash of 5G while in one of the 35 or so major metropolitan areas where it’s available in the U.S. In the interim, let’s take advantage of our increasingly faster cable internet services, especially as a lot of us work – or have kids schooling – from home. x
