5G. Is live NYC

[bushman4]

5G just went live NYC Speed has doubled to 300 mps. However it’s 2 a.m. now so I expect a slower speed in the morning
It’s nowhere near the mmWave we see in Verizon stores
Now the question is … is it worth the battery life I’m going to sacrifice to get that speed ?
In my opinion, No
I’m disappointed as we’ve anticipated so much more for so long

 

[gwhizkids]

5G just went live NYC Speed has doubled to 300 mps. However it’s 2 a.m. now so I expect a slower speed in the morning
It’s nowhere near the mmWave we see in Verizon stores
Now the question is … is it worth the battery life I’m going to sacrifice to get that speed ?
In my opinion, No
I’m disappointed as we’ve anticipated so much more for so long

Interesting. But really, what do you need anything more than 300Mbps for? This seems like the old pixel wars in cameras…people want more but don’t really know why.

 

[wonderings]

We have 5G here, it is fast, but for regular use like websites, YouTube, etc it is not really noticeable. LTE was/is fast as well and plenty for regular data users. I don't think 5G will bring much to our lives, I think where it will stand out is for industries that remote in or need the ability to control over devices or machines over a cell signal. Even the phones themselves, they are very powerful and more then the average person needs. I recently moved from an iPhone 11 to an iPhone 13 and honestly don''t notice any speed difference in terms of running or loading any apps. Sure the screen is better and the camera a little better, everything else is just not noticeable. I think we have hit a ceiling hardware wise for regular use. What is really going to get that much better?

 

[MozMan68]

Like anything else, it is really about chicken an the egg scenarios.

"We don't need faster speeds...no one is watching movies or TV on their phones..."

"Why can't speeds be faster...all I do is watch movies and TV's on my phone..."

"We don't need faster speeds, I can watch TV and movies on my phone at high definition 720p..."

"Why can't speeds be faster? I want to stream and/or download 4K movies and TV shows on my phone because I now have that super nice new screen they just introduced..."

....and so on...and so on...and so on.....

Faster speeds will help drive development of stuff that can utilize the faster speeds.

 

[gwhizkids]

Like anything else, it is really about chicken an the egg scenarios.

"We don't need faster speeds...no one is watching movies or TV on their phones..."

"Why can't speeds be faster...all I do is watch movies and TV's on my phone..."

"We don't need faster speeds, I can watch TV and movies on my phone at high definition 720p..."

"Why can't speeds be faster? I want to stream and/or download 4K movies and TV shows on my phone because I now have that super nice new screen they just introduced..."

....and so on...and so on...and so on.....

Faster speeds will help drive development of stuff that can utilize the faster speeds.

True. But I suspect those things will not be as prevalent in the mobile phone space.

We are starting to bump up against physical and physiological barriers. How much better will 8k video look than 4k does already, for example? However, as noted above, the increased bandwidth and speed will help in things like autonomous vehicle development.

 

[bushman4]

As long as there is no buffering in watching or streaming LTE is adequate.
Bottom line : It’s nothing like they promised and at this point in time doesn’t make a difference

 

[wonderings]

Like anything else, it is really about chicken an the egg scenarios.

"We don't need faster speeds...no one is watching movies or TV on their phones..."

"Why can't speeds be faster...all I do is watch movies and TV's on my phone..."

"We don't need faster speeds, I can watch TV and movies on my phone at high definition 720p..."

"Why can't speeds be faster? I want to stream and/or download 4K movies and TV shows on my phone because I now have that super nice new screen they just introduced..."

....and so on...and so on...and so on.....

Faster speeds will help drive development of stuff that can utilize the faster speeds.

You can watch a movie or TV on your phone with LTE with no issues with Netflix, Prime or anything else, it is more than fast enough to stream 4K content if you wanted to and had the data plan to s support it.

I am not against the development of faster speeds, I believe it has just hit a ceiling of noticeable improvement for regular users browsing, youtube/netflix and really anything else. I have screen shared in to my work computer while on the road using my iPhone as a hotspot for my iPad and was able to connect and do what I had to do with no speed issues, ran the same as it would had I been on wifi.

 

[MozMan68]

You can watch a movie or TV on your phone with LTE with no issues with Netflix, Prime or anything else, it is more than fast enough to stream 4K content if you wanted to and had the data plan to s support it.

I am not against the development of faster speeds, I believe it has just hit a ceiling of noticeable improvement for regular users browsing, youtube/netflix and really anything else. I have screen shared in to my work computer while on the road using my iPhone as a hotspot for my iPad and was able to connect and do what I had to do with no speed issues, ran the same as it would had I been on wifi.

My point is, you are referencing current tech and current needs. It's okay for speeds to drive the development of new options versus the other way around which can be SO frustrating.

Alos, while many of us have ready access to wifi in our homes, at work, etc., 5G opens the door for many in rural areas where the cell phone tower is their lifeline.

 

[ManuCH]

The thing with 5G is that you hardly notice the speed as an individual user, but in congested area, it's much better than 4G, as more users fit on the same cell tower with still decent speed. So especially in big cities with big population density or at big events, the difference will be very noticeable.

 

[Nikhil72]

Where in NYC and what carrier? I’m on verizon and still haven’t seen C band

 

[bushman4]

On ATT it’s called 5G+ it went live about 2 AM and when I got up 7AM it was gone.
ATT does not have NYC listed as a city that can receive C spectrum

 

[Davidalan]

Yesterday afternoon I noticed 5G light up on my phone. AT&T Baltimore

 

[ignatius345]

I've gotten some 5G signals on Verizon here in Brooklyn, going back to the fall of last year. The speed test I ran at the time got well over 500 Mbps, which is a ton faster than I usually get -- and frankly a ton faster than I actually have any use for. The only time I could see myself wanting that much speed out of my phone is if I was tethering my Mac to it. If they put 5G antennas into MacBooks, that would be useful.

 

[sparksd]

It's cranking pretty well on T-Mobile here in Seattle; I'm seeing around 700Mbps on my 12 Pro Max.

 

[JeepGC]

Where in NYC? I’m in Greenwich Village and I have regular 5G on Verizon.

 

[laszlo182]

Interesting. But really, what do you need anything more than 300Mbps for? This seems like the old pixel wars in cameras…people want more but don’t really know why.

you can get 300mbps on 4G

 

[almostinsane]

As long as there is no buffering in watching or streaming LTE is adequate.
Bottom line : It’s nothing like they promised and at this point in time doesn’t make a difference

If you use Windows 11 you won't experience any buffering.

 

[zorinlynx]

It's not about you personally getting 300mbps. It's about capacity.

It means you'll have a more stable, fast connection in more places when you use your phone out and about, even if there's a lot of other phone users there.

Only extreme nerds are going "I CAN DOWNLOAD A MOVIE IN THREE MINUTES" or whatever. Note that I'm an extreme nerd and I think that's cool, but it's not the main benefit.

 

[elvisimprsntr]

The only personal scenario I can come up with is when I'm watching a game at the pub, and a torrential tropical storm knocks out the pub's satellite TV service. I can VPN into my house and stream the live TV feed from my terrestrial HDTV antenna, then Air Play it to the pub's Apple TV. But then, mm wave doesn't propagate well through moisture or tropical storm.

 

[jz0309]

Like anything else, it is really about chicken an the egg scenarios.

"We don't need faster speeds...no one is watching movies or TV on their phones..."

"Why can't speeds be faster...all I do is watch movies and TV's on my phone..."

"We don't need faster speeds, I can watch TV and movies on my phone at high definition 720p..."

"Why can't speeds be faster? I want to stream and/or download 4K movies and TV shows on my phone because I now have that super nice new screen they just introduced..."

....and so on...and so on...and so on.....

Faster speeds will help drive development of stuff that can utilize the faster speeds.

But is it stuff that WE need or stuff that someone THINKS we need???

 

[MozMan68]

But is it stuff that WE need or stuff that someone THINKS we need???

Does it matter? They compete against each other for our dollars. They will develop, we will buy/use what works best. It's not like 5G speeds are a closed system owned by a single company. Speed is speed.

 

[macsound1]

5G just went live NYC Speed has doubled to 300 mps. However it’s 2 a.m. now so I expect a slower speed in the morning
It’s nowhere near the mmWave we see in Verizon stores
Now the question is … is it worth the battery life I’m going to sacrifice to get that speed ?
In my opinion, No
I’m disappointed as we’ve anticipated so much more for so long

Wouldn't it be amazing if wired internet companies pushed faster speeds and new technology

 

[MozMan68]

Wouldn't it be amazing if wired internet companies pushed faster speeds and new technology

My speed keeps going up...went to gig service a cople of years ago...they upped it to 1.2 (really 1.4) with no price change. The installed fiber this Summer which will give me much higher upload. I'm happy with that progress.

 

[upandown]

5G just went live NYC Speed has doubled to 300 mps. However it’s 2 a.m. now so I expect a slower speed in the morning
It’s nowhere near the mmWave we see in Verizon stores
Now the question is … is it worth the battery life I’m going to sacrifice to get that speed ?
In my opinion, No
I’m disappointed as we’ve anticipated so much more for so long

I’m assuming you’re talking about c-band 5G. So you’re seeing 5G UW next to your signal. If that’s the case and you mentioned battery life, Do you notice a big hit to battery life while using the c-band?

Are you sure it’s not millimeter wave?

Thanks; genuinely curious.

 

[sparksd]

My speed keeps going up...went to gig service a cople of years ago...they upped it to 1.2 (really 1.4) with no price change. The installed fiber this Summer which will give me much higher upload. I'm happy with that progress.

I've been real happy with our GB xfinity here in Seattle. I switched from my own router to xfinity's modem/router and it gives solid performance throughout the house (with basement).