Again in July, I advised you that I’d not too long ago sought out a Verizon 5G UW (Extremely Wideband, Verizon’s advertising moniker for millimeter wave 5G) protection space close by downtown Denver, Colorado to definitively discern whether or not my supposedly Verizon carrier-locked, subsequently UW-capable, Google Pixel 4a 5G actually was as marketed. Seems, as I’ve already shared, it truly was a carrier-unlocked 4a 5G, subsequently solely supporting low-band 5G. However there’s rather more to the story, subsequently this follow-up submit, the place I’ll in-order contact on subjects akin to:
- Why I’d initially thought it was even extra service-constrained than it ended up being
- Why it was so difficult to trace down Verizon 5G UW within the first place
- How low band (additionally known as sub-6) 5G efficiency stacks up towards 4G LTE, and
- How AT&T and T-Cellular stack up towards Verizon within the 5G enviornment
Within the enterprise week previous to my weekend testing, and shortly after I acquired and activated the Pixel 4a (5G) (migrating from a Pixel 3a whose three-year help assure from Google was expiring quickly), I’d been in Silicon Valley at my group’s yearly public convention, the Embedded Imaginative and prescient Summit. Particularly, the convention was held on the Santa Clara, CA Conference Heart; I overnighted subsequent door on the Hyatt Regency Santa Clara (each of which I’ve additionally already shared, simply west of the sometimes-noisy Levi’s Stadium).
I’d not seen the lively “5G” indicator on the cellphone whereas setting it up on the residence workplace, however that wasn’t shocking; I stay in a rural space within the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, due west of Golden, CO, the place I really feel lucky to even have (considerably spotty) LTE service. However I used to be shocked to additionally solely have the ability to hook up with LTE at Denver Worldwide Airport (maintain that thought). And I used to be 5G-only each at my resort and the conference heart in what I’d presumed can be 5G UW-pervasive Silicon Valley; I by no means noticed the 5G UW indicator seem on the cellphone’s show (once more, on the time I didn’t learn about its inherent service limitations).
It seems, nevertheless, I later realized, my Silicon Valley 5G UW presumptions weren’t fairly proper. Right here’s the protection map of the Santa Clara, CA space from Verizon’s web site:
Appears to be like 5G UW-rich, proper? However now let’s zoom in, as a result of the resort and conference heart (together with Levi’s Stadium, for that matter) are all in north Santa Clara:
My resort was on the east aspect of Nice America Parkway, throughout the road from Bunker Hill Lane (there’s a light-weight pink vertical rectangle roughly the place the resort is positioned). The conference heart was due south of the resort. That’s all a low band 5G space. Even when my cellphone had been 5G UW-capable, I by no means would have had a 5G UW community obtainable to faucet into. And equally curiously, Levi’s Stadium (residence to not solely concert events but additionally San Francisco 49ers professional American soccer residence video games), positioned simply east of San Tomas Aquino Creek and simply south of West Tasman Drive, is additionally a low band 5G-only space. One may suppose that if Verizon needed to point out off its shiny new 5G UW community, it’d prioritize a spot able to seating 68,500…I suppose not.
Again in Colorado, I chosen Sloan’s Lake, 3 miles due east of Denver’s central enterprise district, as my testing website:
As soon as I didn’t see a 5G UW indicator on my cellphone there, I spotted the cellphone wasn’t as marketed. However since I used to be there anyway, I made a decision to as an alternative do some low-band 5G bandwidth exams. Right here’s the Speedtest outcome:
I used to be shocked by how low (i.e., LTE-reminiscent) it was, so I repeated my testing utilizing the FCC’s app (which oddly doesn’t appear to but pay attention to latest-generation mobile applied sciences, per the “Your Web connection: 4G (LTE)” message it reported, however you may see from the higher proper nook that I used to be certainly on 5G):
However right here’s the place issues acquired actually bizarre. On a whim, within the means of driving again residence, I made a decision to seize one other screenshot whereas driving ~50 MPH on freeway 6 in Golden, CO and on LTE (sure, I used my cellphone whereas behind the wheel…disgrace on me). Check out the outcome:
I noticed larger latency and jitter, which is sensible as a result of I used to be in (pretty excessive velocity) movement on the time. However I acquired method larger obtain velocity specifically, despite the fact that I used to be on “previous” LTE versus “new” low band 5G. I repeated my LTE testing a few days later whereas standing nonetheless (on the grocery retailer, if my recollection is right) in Evergreen, CO…once more, I ended up with notably excessive downstream bandwidth, this time accompanied by larger upstream bandwidth and each decrease latency and jitter:
Zoom out on the Verizon protection map and also you’ll perceive why I needed to be so explicit in selecting the place to do my 5G UW testing (that’s Sloan’s Lake on the western fringe of the bright-red scattered 5G UW footprint):
And zoom out additional and also you’ll see how restricted in scope even Verizon’s low band 5G rollout is at current:
Candidly, even that information is suspect. The black-and-white location marker west of Denver is the place my residence is positioned. I’ve by no means seen 5G lively right here; absent a femtocell, in actual fact, it’s hit-and-miss to get mobile voice or information protection at all.
Sufficient Verizon bashing. What about AT&T, my different in-use service (for my private cellphone line, versus Verizon for work)? Right here the state of affairs is nice information/unhealthy information compared. Try their low band 5G community footprint:
One qualifier right here; I can’t positively affirm that AT&T’s “5G” doesn’t additionally embody 4G LTE Superior (which AT&T’s marketeers deceptively as an alternative named 5GE, for 5G Evolution). After catching flack from the Nationwide Promoting Overview Board in 2020, AT&T promised that it will cease utilizing 5GE terminology in adverts, though current telephones would proceed to show the deceptive notification. Whether or not the about-face extends to protection map claims is unclear.
Nonetheless, in the event you click on on the pop-up to see the place AT&T at present gives “5G+” service (AT&T, not like Verizon, combines each C-band, i.e., mid-band, and mmWave 5G below the identical “5G+” umbrella), you’ll discover solely a single location in the whole Denver space, Ball Enviornment, the house of (amongst different issues) the Denver Nuggets professional basketball crew, 2022 Stanley Cup-winning Colorado Avalanche professional hockey crew, and Colorado Mammoth professional lacrosse crew. Apparently AT&T, not like Verizon, thinks it’s a good thought to prioritize a spot able to seating 20,000 individuals when exhibiting off its shiny new high-speed 5G UW community, however the level’s a bit moot since those self same individuals can’t get that very same community wherever else…
Lastly, what about T-Cellular? Have a look:
Wow. This graphic makes it clear why the service was so motivated to mix with Dash. Dash already had entry to ample C-band spectrum (higher but, mid-band spectrum not instantly adjoining to frequencies utilized by airplane avionics programs), which T-Cellular was in a position to redeploy comparatively shortly for 5G functions. C-band 5G is each sooner than low-band 5G and gives superior vary and premises penetration capabilities versus mmWave 5G. C-band very properly could also be what lastly delivers on 5G’s longstanding improve guarantees, and proper now no less than, T-Cellular is within the implementation driver seat.
Curb your enthusiasm, nevertheless, as a result of the carriers produce other tips up their sleeves. As soon as once more, for instance, a reminder that in case your AT&T-locked cellphone says it’s on a “5G Evolution” community, that’s not actual 5G. Additionally as already talked about, Verizon solely helps 5G UW (mmWave) on carrier-locked variations of 5G-capable Google Pixel telephones, and people telephones are bought at a premium to the pricing of unlocked equivalents. Verizon (and accomplice Google) additionally refuse to allow C-band help on legacy 5G telephones, even when these telephones’ wi-fi subsystems help the related mid-band frequency ranges…and I’d wager that any C-band help will, like mmWave help, solely come on carrier-locked telephones. And AT&T is doing the identical factor, breaking earlier guarantees within the course of. Sigh.
What have your 5G experiences been thus far, readers? Hold forth within the feedback!
—Brian Dipert is the Editor-in-Chief of the Edge AI and Imaginative and prescient Alliance, and a Senior Analyst at BDTI and Editor-in-Chief of InsideDSP, the corporate’s on-line publication.
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