5G has been gathering momentum and it is in the process of being rolled out. Mobile phone companies are frantically trying to create the most versatile phones that have 5G capability and can provide the quickest download speeds.
The hype has been building, but has there been too much fuss created? Are 5G phones really going to take off? While there is serious demand for 5G phones, it could be a while before we see any meaningful impact. Perhaps we should re-evaluate and take stock of where 5G is before we make any cast-iron assertions.
US playing catch up?
At present, 5G has been commonly used as a marketing term and it is serving merely as a tool to try and convince people to buy the latest iPhone or Android device. What we do know is that phone prices have been soaring for years.
From a 5G perspective, there are many countries still in the nascent stages and that includes the USA. Verizon is making it its mission to create the fastest 5G possible, however in the US it is barely available. Currently, 5G is restricted to just a few regions and it is unlikely this is going to change anytime soon.
5G is very much focussed on being short range and there are still hurdles to be cleared before it is rolled out everywhere. Other US carriers are concentrating on a different type of 5G technology which isn’t as heavily reliant on speed, but on being more pragmatic in the way it reaches out to communities.
Is 5G much faster than 4G?
Another myth that can be debunked about 5G is that it is only fractionally faster than 4G. Indeed, some tests have shown that 5G is only a bit faster than 4G and at times, possibly a little slower.
Thorough testing at PC Mag suggested that 5G didn’t perform as well as expected and were outstripped by 4G in some departments.
A review by PC Mag read: “We admit it, we bought into the 5G hype. Carriers, phone makers, and chip makers alike have all been selling 5G as faster and more powerful than 4G, with lower latency. So, I was shocked to see that our AT&T 5G results, especially, were slower than 4G results on the same network.”
Aside from speed, reliability is a determining factor. When users struggle to get 5G on their phone, the signal immediately drops down to 4G and the download speeds for a standard 4G connection may be much quicker. Android Police news site’s editor in chief David Ruddock has been critical and bemoaned 5G for ‘delays in connection’ and ‘latency being totally ridiculous’ which strikes a chord.
5G and its future
Do long term problems lie ahead for 5G? Clearly, 5G is being used as a marketing tool. While it is widely perceived as a phone for the future, there are a lot of hurdles that need to be cleared before this is the case.