Global smartphone data speeds are up thanks to 5G rollout

Posted:
in General Discussion
Cellular data speeds have begun increasing around the globe as more people have access to 5G, offering higher speeds and lower latency "almost everywhere."




A new report from OpenSignal shows that data speeds are up globally thanks to the widespread rollout of 5G, which began in late 2019.

Download speeds have increased notably in South Korea. Prior to 5G launching, South Korean users averaged 52.4 Mbps but now average 129.7 Mbps. These speed increases have resulted in South Korea being listed as the best place to play online games based on internet speed.

Users in Canada have also seen a notable speed boost, rising from 42.5 Mbps to 64.1 Mbps on average. Users in the U.K. saw an increase from 21.7 Mbps to 39.7 Mbps, while those in the U.S. also saw a modest increase from 21.3 Mbps to 37 Mbps.

While 5G has helped boost speeds globally, it's far from finalized. OpenSource reminds readers that 5G is still in the nascent stages, and that the service will continue to improve over time, just as 4G did.
To date, almost all 5G services use early versions of the 5G standard -- mostly Release 15. Every few years the main industry standards body -- the 3GPP -- coordinates the creation of a new technology mark which vendors and mobile operators aim to use to improve users' experience. There are already several versions of 5G either at various stages of development or which have been finalized and will soon see widespread commercial deployments.
The iPhone 12 was the first of Apple's lineup to be compatible with 5G, launching in October 2020. Now, the iPhone 13, fifth-generation 12.9-inch iPad Pro, third-generation 11-inch iPad Pro, and the sixth-generation iPad Mini also work with 5G mobile networks.

Read on AppleInsider
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 46
    US still lags?? Canada way better. Its a WOW
  • Reply 2 of 46
    I’m still not understanding how 5G on my iPhone matters. I have yet to see anyone watching 5 streams of sports video simultaneously and very little mobile gaming (and the mobile gaming I usually see is something like Candy Crush or Solitaire which are not bandwidth intensive).

    Will it matter in the future? Possibly, but the future doesn’t make a difference on the phone I have now.
    baconstangmuthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 3 of 46
    GeorgeBMacGeorgeBMac Posts: 11,421member
    I’m still not understanding how 5G on my iPhone matters. I have yet to see anyone watching 5 streams of sports video simultaneously and very little mobile gaming (and the mobile gaming I usually see is something like Candy Crush or Solitaire which are not bandwidth intensive).

    Will it matter in the future? Possibly, but the future doesn’t make a difference on the phone I have now.

    Yeh, you're right.  We should have stuck with 3G.  It was good enough.   /s
    grandact73
  • Reply 4 of 46
    GeorgeBMacGeorgeBMac Posts: 11,421member
    Kuyangkoh said:
    US still lags?? Canada way better. Its a WOW

    The U.S. seems to lag in a lot of things.  
    We've prioritized private enterprise profits over national infrastructure for 2-3 decades -- and it's showing.
    While our stock markets continue hitting all time highs, hundreds of thousands of Americans die prematurely every year because our public health agencies were gutted and their functions turned over to private industry, bridges are falling down -- and telecommunications are lagging with millions of Americans not only having slow connections but NO connections.

    But, but, but... Aren't taxes evil and government totally inept?    /s
  • Reply 5 of 46
    rolyroly Posts: 74member
    I’m still not understanding how 5G on my iPhone matters. I have yet to see anyone watching 5 streams of sports video simultaneously and very little mobile gaming (and the mobile gaming I usually see is something like Candy Crush or Solitaire which are not bandwidth intensive).

    Will it matter in the future? Possibly, but the future doesn’t make a difference on the phone I have now.
    Ping times / latency is much better on 5G, which translates to much quicker page loads and lag free video calls and gaming. It’s not just about raw speed. Also less congested cells due to greater network capacity means less chance of service degradation etc. so it is benefiting you now even though you don’t realise
  • Reply 6 of 46
    I’m still not understanding how 5G on my iPhone matters. I have yet to see anyone watching 5 streams of sports video simultaneously and very little mobile gaming (and the mobile gaming I usually see is something like Candy Crush or Solitaire which are not bandwidth intensive).

    Will it matter in the future? Possibly, but the future doesn’t make a difference on the phone I have now.

    Yeh, you're right.  We should have stuck with 3G.  It was good enough.   /s
    Your reading comprehension is off today. I made no mention of 3G whatsoever. Not to mention the upgrade from 3G to LTE was immediately and noticeably better. Not so with 5G. 

    Tell me, if you can, what benefits you have personally experienced of 5G over 4G on a cell phone. 

    roly said:
    I’m still not understanding how 5G on my iPhone matters. I have yet to see anyone watching 5 streams of sports video simultaneously and very little mobile gaming (and the mobile gaming I usually see is something like Candy Crush or Solitaire which are not bandwidth intensive).

    Will it matter in the future? Possibly, but the future doesn’t make a difference on the phone I have now.
    Ping times / latency is much better on 5G, which translates to much quicker page loads and lag free video calls and gaming. It’s not just about raw speed. Also less congested cells due to greater network capacity means less chance of service degradation etc. so it is benefiting you now even though you don’t realise
    Your points are valid. The issue here is 5G coverage is still limited enough that most people won’t even be experiencing those benefits even behind the scenes. Also, those seem more like benefits to the carrier than to users. I realize the experience can be different for people who live in congested areas. 

    The things you mention are not the wow factor features that are prominent in the marketing of 5G. All that marketing is basically fluff. I don’t know anyone that says, “I need a 5G phone so I can experience lower network congestion.” But the marketing folks have to push things that people don’t really care about, like the 5 simultaneous streams of video I mentioned. 

    (How many people watch 5 streams of simultaneous video on their big TV at home, let alone on their comparatively tiny phone screen?)
  • Reply 7 of 46
    Love my Apple iPhone Pro 13 Max!

    I use my AT&T hotspot a lot when I'm out and about, connecting my newer MacBook Air and previous gen iPad Pro 12.9".

    Just today, I downloaded a Monterey system update, as well as the latest update to my 3D software app.

    I'm sure 5G helped speed up all that!
  • Reply 8 of 46
  • Reply 9 of 46
    I have read the articles on the promise of 5G, and understand what I have read about the difficulties of making 5G really work great. That aside, I just have NOT seen a difference right now from 4GLTE.
    My iPhone says it is getting a 5G signal.
    Load times do not seem faster. 4GLTE was "ok" and not as fast as my in home high-speed internet speed by far.
    But, my 5G? --about the same, I guess. And like before, not as fast as my home high-speed internet speed ...by far!

    I certainly want tech to move forward and make things like this faster and better. If 5G is some small step toward better, ...ok. But it is not even close to equalling the amazing speed of my home wired internet (with home wifi).


  • Reply 10 of 46
    netroxnetrox Posts: 1,415member
    I noticed when I bumped my speed from 50Mbps to 1Gbps, the bandwidth monitor shows twice more data being fed. It shows how greedy websites are lately with pushing all the junk data that we don't need.

    Bandwidth costs money. 

  • Reply 11 of 46
    GeorgeBMacGeorgeBMac Posts: 11,421member
    I’m still not understanding how 5G on my iPhone matters. I have yet to see anyone watching 5 streams of sports video simultaneously and very little mobile gaming (and the mobile gaming I usually see is something like Candy Crush or Solitaire which are not bandwidth intensive).

    Will it matter in the future? Possibly, but the future doesn’t make a difference on the phone I have now.

    Yeh, you're right.  We should have stuck with 3G.  It was good enough.   /s
    Your reading comprehension is off today. I made no mention of 3G whatsoever. Not to mention the upgrade from 3G to LTE was immediately and noticeably better. Not so with 5G. 

    Tell me, if you can, what benefits you have personally experienced of 5G over 4G on a cell phone. 


    I see the sarcasm went right over your head.   But, while some prefer to be stuck in the past, others like to move forward.  I'm in the latter category.

    In any case, this from the Wall Street Journal may answer your hesitancy:

    China’s 5G Soars Over America’s

    In some U.S. cities, it’s slower than the old 4G system. Washington should make it a priority.

    At this point, football fans have seen so many ads from AT&T and Verizon claiming to have the fastest and most reliable 5G service on the planet that those without a 5G smartphone might think they are really missing something. Don’t be misled. Unless you are traveling internationally, you won’t enjoy faster speeds with a new 5G-enabled smartphone than you’d get on a 4G phone streaming games from New York, Los Angeles or many other U.S. cities. AT&T’s and Verizon’s new 5G networks are often significantly slower than the 4G networks they replace. America is far behind in almost every dimension of 5G while other nations—including China—race ahead.

    America’s average 5G mobile internet speed is roughly 75 megabits per second, which is abysmal. In China’s urban centers 5G phones get average speeds of 300 megabits per second. Though that’s not quite the fastest 5G in the world—South Korea claims that title at over 400 Mbps—it’s still fast enough to download a high-definition movie in two minutes. Mobile internet speed is a central advancement of 5G, which enables a new domain of breakthrough applications with potent economic and national-security implications.

    So, the problem is not with 5G but with the U.S. approach to rolling it out.  We rely on for-profit corporations to build out our infrastructure.  But, their goal is to maximize their profit rather than build or modernize national infrastructure.  We learned that 100 years ago with electric and telephones.  We lagged until the federal government stepped in and created the conditions for a high quality national roll-out throughout the nation -- even the hillbillies of Appalachia  got electric and telephone.
    ... The government is now, finally stepping forward.  But they going forward with older, wired technology.  But, as the article points out:  this is not just about your iPhone.  It's about National Security.
    edited February 2022
  • Reply 12 of 46
    I’m still not understanding how 5G on my iPhone matters. I have yet to see anyone watching 5 streams of sports video simultaneously and very little mobile gaming (and the mobile gaming I usually see is something like Candy Crush or Solitaire which are not bandwidth intensive).

    Will it matter in the future? Possibly, but the future doesn’t make a difference on the phone I have now.

    Yeh, you're right.  We should have stuck with 3G.  It was good enough.   /s
    Your reading comprehension is off today. I made no mention of 3G whatsoever. Not to mention the upgrade from 3G to LTE was immediately and noticeably better. Not so with 5G. 

    Tell me, if you can, what benefits you have personally experienced of 5G over 4G on a cell phone. 


    I see the sarcasm went right over your head.   But, while some prefer to be stuck in the past, others like to move forward.  I'm in the latter category.
    I knew you couldn’t answer the question. Your “stuck in the past” response is the best you’ve ever been able to come up with regarding 5G on a phone. 

    The truth is; aside from benefits to the carrier or highly congested areas, the raw speed is not particularly useful (on a phone), despite the carrier propaganda. As pointed out above, there is no discernible difference using my phone when I am at home, on over 1 Gbps Wi-Fi, than while out with a slower cellular connection. What amazing capabilities are being unlocked by the higher Wi-Fi speed that I’m missing out on when on cellular? Answer: none

    I suppose you will be advocating for 8k phone displays and 20 Gbps phone cell speeds, too, because bigger must always be better, even if the difference is negligible or can’t even be seen. 

    ETA: as usual, you are off your game in the 5G threads. You can never answer the question of 5G on a phone. However, if I was to ask you the benefits of your Apple Watch you would easily be able to reply, as I have seen numerous times in the past. You also seem unable to realize that I’m not “against” 5G, I just haven’t seen a compelling reason we need it on phones (as consumers). 
    edited February 2022 muthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 13 of 46
    To paraphrase George Orwell, all 5Gs are equal, some are more equal than others. My 5G (and Safari) feels very snappy. 😂 
    GeorgeBMac
  • Reply 14 of 46
    GeorgeBMacGeorgeBMac Posts: 11,421member
    I’m still not understanding how 5G on my iPhone matters. I have yet to see anyone watching 5 streams of sports video simultaneously and very little mobile gaming (and the mobile gaming I usually see is something like Candy Crush or Solitaire which are not bandwidth intensive).

    Will it matter in the future? Possibly, but the future doesn’t make a difference on the phone I have now.

    Yeh, you're right.  We should have stuck with 3G.  It was good enough.   /s
    Your reading comprehension is off today. I made no mention of 3G whatsoever. Not to mention the upgrade from 3G to LTE was immediately and noticeably better. Not so with 5G. 

    Tell me, if you can, what benefits you have personally experienced of 5G over 4G on a cell phone. 


    I see the sarcasm went right over your head.   But, while some prefer to be stuck in the past, others like to move forward.  I'm in the latter category.
    I knew you couldn’t answer the question. Your “stuck in the past” response is the best you’ve ever been able to come up with regarding 5G on a phone. 

    The truth is; aside from benefits to the carrier or highly congested areas, the raw speed is not particularly useful (on a phone), despite the carrier propaganda. As pointed out above, there is no discernible difference using my phone when I am at home, on over 1 Gbps Wi-Fi, than while out with a slower cellular connection. What amazing capabilities are being unlocked by the higher Wi-Fi speed that I’m missing out on when on cellular? Answer: none

    I suppose you will be advocating for 8k phone displays and 20 Gbps phone cell speeds, too, because bigger must always be better, even if the difference is negligible or can’t even be seen. 

    ETA: as usual, you are off your game in the 5G threads. You can never answer the question of 5G on a phone. However, if I was to ask you the benefits of your Apple Watch you would easily be able to reply, as I have seen numerous times in the past. You also seem unable to realize that I’m not “against” 5G, I just haven’t seen a compelling reason we need it on phones (as consumers). 
    I think I -- or rather the Wall Street Journal I quoted from -- answered your questions.
    Specifically:
    The technical world is leaving us behind.  Yeh, in the past. 

    You may have missed it -- so I'll repeat:
    In any case, this from the Wall Street Journal may answer your hesitancy:

    China’s 5G Soars Over America’s

    In some U.S. cities, it’s slower than the old 4G system. Washington should make it a priority.

    At this point, football fans have seen so many ads from AT&T and Verizon claiming to have the fastest and most reliable 5G service on the planet that those without a 5G smartphone might think they are really missing something. Don’t be misled. Unless you are traveling internationally, you won’t enjoy faster speeds with a new 5G-enabled smartphone than you’d get on a 4G phone streaming games from New York, Los Angeles or many other U.S. cities. AT&T’s and Verizon’s new 5G networks are often significantly slower than the 4G networks they replace. America is far behind in almost every dimension of 5G while other nations—including China—race ahead.

    America’s average 5G mobile internet speed is roughly 75 megabits per second, which is abysmal. In China’s urban centers 5G phones get average speeds of 300 megabits per second. Though that’s not quite the fastest 5G in the world—South Korea claims that title at over 400 Mbps—it’s still fast enough to download a high-definition movie in two minutes. Mobile internet speed is a central advancement of 5G, which enables a new domain of breakthrough applications with potent economic and national-security implications.

    So, the problem is not with 5G but with the U.S. approach to rolling it out.  We rely on for-profit corporations to build out our infrastructure.  But, their goal is to maximize their profit rather than build or modernize national infrastructure.  We learned that 100 years ago with electric and telephones.  We lagged until the federal government stepped in and created the conditions for a high quality national roll-out throughout the nation -- even the hillbillies of Appalachia  got electric and telephone.
    ... The government is now, finally stepping forward.  But they going forward with older, wired technology.  But, as the article points out:  this is not just about your iPhone.  It's about National Security.

    edited February 2022
  • Reply 15 of 46
    I’m still not understanding how 5G on my iPhone matters. I have yet to see anyone watching 5 streams of sports video simultaneously and very little mobile gaming (and the mobile gaming I usually see is something like Candy Crush or Solitaire which are not bandwidth intensive).

    Will it matter in the future? Possibly, but the future doesn’t make a difference on the phone I have now.

    Yeh, you're right.  We should have stuck with 3G.  It was good enough.   /s
    Your reading comprehension is off today. I made no mention of 3G whatsoever. Not to mention the upgrade from 3G to LTE was immediately and noticeably better. Not so with 5G. 

    Tell me, if you can, what benefits you have personally experienced of 5G over 4G on a cell phone. 


    I see the sarcasm went right over your head.   But, while some prefer to be stuck in the past, others like to move forward.  I'm in the latter category.
    I knew you couldn’t answer the question. Your “stuck in the past” response is the best you’ve ever been able to come up with regarding 5G on a phone. 

    The truth is; aside from benefits to the carrier or highly congested areas, the raw speed is not particularly useful (on a phone), despite the carrier propaganda. As pointed out above, there is no discernible difference using my phone when I am at home, on over 1 Gbps Wi-Fi, than while out with a slower cellular connection. What amazing capabilities are being unlocked by the higher Wi-Fi speed that I’m missing out on when on cellular? Answer: none

    I suppose you will be advocating for 8k phone displays and 20 Gbps phone cell speeds, too, because bigger must always be better, even if the difference is negligible or can’t even be seen. 

    ETA: as usual, you are off your game in the 5G threads. You can never answer the question of 5G on a phone. However, if I was to ask you the benefits of your Apple Watch you would easily be able to reply, as I have seen numerous times in the past. You also seem unable to realize that I’m not “against” 5G, I just haven’t seen a compelling reason we need it on phones (as consumers). 
    I think I -- or rather the Wall Street Journal I quoted from -- answered your questions.
    Specifically:
    The technical world is leaving us behind.  Yeh, in the past.  You are welcome to stay there flipping your phone though.  You seem to prefer that.
    Incorrect. Neither you or the WSJ quote answered my fairly simple question. At all. The WSJ did mention “breakthrough applications with potential economic and national security implications”, though, but again, didn’t give one hint as to what those might be or who is using them. 

    Again, tell me, if you can, what benefits you have personally experienced of 5G over 4G on a cell phone. 

    My guess is you won’t give me an answer based on your own experience. Instead you’ll repeat over and over about “the future” and “moving forward”. The carrier propagandists must love that. 

    I’ll repeat this to be clear. I have no issues with 5G as a technology or its use in emerging areas. You seem not to be able to understand (or are simply ignoring) that in the case of mobile phones there isn’t much that is improved with 5G and nothing that can’t also be done over Wi-Fi, no miracle apps thanks to 5G. 
    muthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 16 of 46
    GeorgeBMacGeorgeBMac Posts: 11,421member
    I’m still not understanding how 5G on my iPhone matters. I have yet to see anyone watching 5 streams of sports video simultaneously and very little mobile gaming (and the mobile gaming I usually see is something like Candy Crush or Solitaire which are not bandwidth intensive).

    Will it matter in the future? Possibly, but the future doesn’t make a difference on the phone I have now.

    Yeh, you're right.  We should have stuck with 3G.  It was good enough.   /s
    Your reading comprehension is off today. I made no mention of 3G whatsoever. Not to mention the upgrade from 3G to LTE was immediately and noticeably better. Not so with 5G. 

    Tell me, if you can, what benefits you have personally experienced of 5G over 4G on a cell phone. 


    I see the sarcasm went right over your head.   But, while some prefer to be stuck in the past, others like to move forward.  I'm in the latter category.
    I knew you couldn’t answer the question. Your “stuck in the past” response is the best you’ve ever been able to come up with regarding 5G on a phone. 

    The truth is; aside from benefits to the carrier or highly congested areas, the raw speed is not particularly useful (on a phone), despite the carrier propaganda. As pointed out above, there is no discernible difference using my phone when I am at home, on over 1 Gbps Wi-Fi, than while out with a slower cellular connection. What amazing capabilities are being unlocked by the higher Wi-Fi speed that I’m missing out on when on cellular? Answer: none

    I suppose you will be advocating for 8k phone displays and 20 Gbps phone cell speeds, too, because bigger must always be better, even if the difference is negligible or can’t even be seen. 

    ETA: as usual, you are off your game in the 5G threads. You can never answer the question of 5G on a phone. However, if I was to ask you the benefits of your Apple Watch you would easily be able to reply, as I have seen numerous times in the past. You also seem unable to realize that I’m not “against” 5G, I just haven’t seen a compelling reason we need it on phones (as consumers). 
    I think I -- or rather the Wall Street Journal I quoted from -- answered your questions.
    Specifically:
    The technical world is leaving us behind.  Yeh, in the past.  You are welcome to stay there flipping your phone though.  You seem to prefer that.
    Incorrect. Neither you or the WSJ quote answered my fairly simple question. At all. The WSJ did mention “breakthrough applications with potential economic and national security implications”, though, but again, didn’t give one hint as to what those might be or who is using them. 

    Again, tell me, if you can, what benefits you have personally experienced of 5G over 4G on a cell phone. 

    My guess is you won’t give me an answer based on your own experience. Instead you’ll repeat over and over about “the future” and “moving forward”. The carrier propagandists must love that. 

    I’ll repeat this to be clear. I have no issues with 5G as a technology or its use in emerging areas. You seem not to be able to understand (or are simply ignoring) that in the case of mobile phones there isn’t much that is improved with 5G and nothing that can’t also be done over Wi-Fi, no miracle apps thanks to 5G. 

    So unless you personally experience some great benefit -- despite, as the article clearly stated -- how American Telecoms have mismanaged it, you claim all of 5G is worthless.

    Got it.
    The world seems to think otherwise though.  But stand your ground!
  • Reply 17 of 46
    I’m still not understanding how 5G on my iPhone matters. I have yet to see anyone watching 5 streams of sports video simultaneously and very little mobile gaming (and the mobile gaming I usually see is something like Candy Crush or Solitaire which are not bandwidth intensive).

    Will it matter in the future? Possibly, but the future doesn’t make a difference on the phone I have now.

    Yeh, you're right.  We should have stuck with 3G.  It was good enough.   /s
    Your reading comprehension is off today. I made no mention of 3G whatsoever. Not to mention the upgrade from 3G to LTE was immediately and noticeably better. Not so with 5G. 

    Tell me, if you can, what benefits you have personally experienced of 5G over 4G on a cell phone. 


    I see the sarcasm went right over your head.   But, while some prefer to be stuck in the past, others like to move forward.  I'm in the latter category.
    I knew you couldn’t answer the question. Your “stuck in the past” response is the best you’ve ever been able to come up with regarding 5G on a phone. 

    The truth is; aside from benefits to the carrier or highly congested areas, the raw speed is not particularly useful (on a phone), despite the carrier propaganda. As pointed out above, there is no discernible difference using my phone when I am at home, on over 1 Gbps Wi-Fi, than while out with a slower cellular connection. What amazing capabilities are being unlocked by the higher Wi-Fi speed that I’m missing out on when on cellular? Answer: none

    I suppose you will be advocating for 8k phone displays and 20 Gbps phone cell speeds, too, because bigger must always be better, even if the difference is negligible or can’t even be seen. 

    ETA: as usual, you are off your game in the 5G threads. You can never answer the question of 5G on a phone. However, if I was to ask you the benefits of your Apple Watch you would easily be able to reply, as I have seen numerous times in the past. You also seem unable to realize that I’m not “against” 5G, I just haven’t seen a compelling reason we need it on phones (as consumers). 
    I think I -- or rather the Wall Street Journal I quoted from -- answered your questions.
    Specifically:
    The technical world is leaving us behind.  Yeh, in the past.  You are welcome to stay there flipping your phone though.  You seem to prefer that.
    Incorrect. Neither you or the WSJ quote answered my fairly simple question. At all. The WSJ did mention “breakthrough applications with potential economic and national security implications”, though, but again, didn’t give one hint as to what those might be or who is using them. 

    Again, tell me, if you can, what benefits you have personally experienced of 5G over 4G on a cell phone. 

    My guess is you won’t give me an answer based on your own experience. Instead you’ll repeat over and over about “the future” and “moving forward”. The carrier propagandists must love that. 

    I’ll repeat this to be clear. I have no issues with 5G as a technology or its use in emerging areas. You seem not to be able to understand (or are simply ignoring) that in the case of mobile phones there isn’t much that is improved with 5G and nothing that can’t also be done over Wi-Fi, no miracle apps thanks to 5G. 

    So unless you personally experience some great benefit -- despite, as the article clearly stated -- how American Telecoms have mismanaged it, you claim all of 5G is worthless.

    Got it.
    The world seems to think otherwise though.  But stand your ground!
    Incorrect. The article you cited did not mention the benefits of 5G on a cell phone (unless you think consumer cell phones with 5G are a matter of national security). 

    Again, tell me, if you can, what benefits you have personally experienced of 5G over 4G on a cell phone. We could make it easier, tell me benefits maybe you or I haven’t seen but are a real consumer benefit.
    muthuk_vanalingam
  • Reply 18 of 46
    Snappy Safari? 😈
    Just kidding...

    EDIT: Why don't AI sort out their Emoji handing?
    edited February 2022
  • Reply 19 of 46
    GeorgeBMacGeorgeBMac Posts: 11,421member
    I’m still not understanding how 5G on my iPhone matters. I have yet to see anyone watching 5 streams of sports video simultaneously and very little mobile gaming (and the mobile gaming I usually see is something like Candy Crush or Solitaire which are not bandwidth intensive).

    Will it matter in the future? Possibly, but the future doesn’t make a difference on the phone I have now.

    Yeh, you're right.  We should have stuck with 3G.  It was good enough.   /s
    Your reading comprehension is off today. I made no mention of 3G whatsoever. Not to mention the upgrade from 3G to LTE was immediately and noticeably better. Not so with 5G. 

    Tell me, if you can, what benefits you have personally experienced of 5G over 4G on a cell phone. 


    I see the sarcasm went right over your head.   But, while some prefer to be stuck in the past, others like to move forward.  I'm in the latter category.
    I knew you couldn’t answer the question. Your “stuck in the past” response is the best you’ve ever been able to come up with regarding 5G on a phone. 

    The truth is; aside from benefits to the carrier or highly congested areas, the raw speed is not particularly useful (on a phone), despite the carrier propaganda. As pointed out above, there is no discernible difference using my phone when I am at home, on over 1 Gbps Wi-Fi, than while out with a slower cellular connection. What amazing capabilities are being unlocked by the higher Wi-Fi speed that I’m missing out on when on cellular? Answer: none

    I suppose you will be advocating for 8k phone displays and 20 Gbps phone cell speeds, too, because bigger must always be better, even if the difference is negligible or can’t even be seen. 

    ETA: as usual, you are off your game in the 5G threads. You can never answer the question of 5G on a phone. However, if I was to ask you the benefits of your Apple Watch you would easily be able to reply, as I have seen numerous times in the past. You also seem unable to realize that I’m not “against” 5G, I just haven’t seen a compelling reason we need it on phones (as consumers). 
    I think I -- or rather the Wall Street Journal I quoted from -- answered your questions.
    Specifically:
    The technical world is leaving us behind.  Yeh, in the past.  You are welcome to stay there flipping your phone though.  You seem to prefer that.
    Incorrect. Neither you or the WSJ quote answered my fairly simple question. At all. The WSJ did mention “breakthrough applications with potential economic and national security implications”, though, but again, didn’t give one hint as to what those might be or who is using them. 

    Again, tell me, if you can, what benefits you have personally experienced of 5G over 4G on a cell phone. 

    My guess is you won’t give me an answer based on your own experience. Instead you’ll repeat over and over about “the future” and “moving forward”. The carrier propagandists must love that. 

    I’ll repeat this to be clear. I have no issues with 5G as a technology or its use in emerging areas. You seem not to be able to understand (or are simply ignoring) that in the case of mobile phones there isn’t much that is improved with 5G and nothing that can’t also be done over Wi-Fi, no miracle apps thanks to 5G. 

    So unless you personally experience some great benefit -- despite, as the article clearly stated -- how American Telecoms have mismanaged it, you claim all of 5G is worthless.

    Got it.
    The world seems to think otherwise though.  But stand your ground!
    Incorrect. The article you cited did not mention the benefits of 5G on a cell phone (unless you think consumer cell phones with 5G are a matter of national security). 

    Again, tell me, if you can, what benefits you have personally experienced of 5G over 4G on a cell phone. We could make it easier, tell me benefits maybe you or I haven’t seen but are a real consumer benefit.

    So you return to:  "Tell me what benefits you have personally experienced of 5G over 4G" 
    Your question is irrelevant.  3G, 4G, 5G are all part of the national infrastructure that our nation and its people depend on. 

    Through the 1800's and early 1900's the nation invested extensively in the infrastructure of the day:  railroads, telegraph & telephone lines, roads, bridges, gas and electrical systems, educational and vocational systems -- and the great American industrial empire was enabled by those investments.  But today, that infrastructure is falling into obsolescence and disrepair -- as is our nation -- while other nations race ahead.

    Asking if you "personally experience benefit" from the country's infrastructure has no meaning.  It is the foundation of our nation.  And, when it falls into obsolescence or disrepair, the nation and its people fall with it.

    Like any corporation, the nation must invest in itself.  And, 5G is one part of that investment.
    edited February 2022
  • Reply 20 of 46
    crowleycrowley Posts: 10,453member
    So unless you personally experience some great benefit -- despite, as the article clearly stated -- how American Telecoms have mismanaged it, you claim all of 5G is worthless.

    Got it.
    The world seems to think otherwise though.  But stand your ground!
    Actually they never said 5G was worthless, just:
    I’m still not understanding how 5G on my iPhone matters.
    Which you replied to and starting tilting at windmills, as per usual.
    muthuk_vanalingam
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