And another way to get everyone’s bill back up to $120 or even $150 monthly. Not paying a dime for 5G “premium”, if they go that route.
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Testing 5G: What 5G Speeds Will Be Like When the 2020 iPhones Launch
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Apple isn't planning to launch a 5G iPhone until 2020, but carriers in the United States and other smartphone manufacturers like Samsung are already testing 5G, which offers download speeds that are much faster than 4G.
Verizon invited MacRumors to Chicago to test its 5G network, giving us an idea of what 5G speeds will be like when we can use 5G networks on our iPhones in 2020.
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Because there aren't iPhones compatible with 5G networks, we tested 5G speeds in Chicago with an LG V50 and a Samsung Galaxy S10 5G, two smartphones that are Android-based.
Verizon has 5G in a few cities right now, in a limited number of locations, which is why we needed to visit Chicago to test it out. Verizon and other carriers are working on the 5G rollout, but it's a slow process that's still going to be ongoing even when 5G iPhones launch.
There are several 5G nodes scattered across Chicago right now, in the downtown area and in popular tourist areas near Willis Tower and the famous Bean.
In our testing with a 5G Android phone, we were able to hit download speeds of close to 2Gb/s, which is incredible compared to 4G LTE speeds. Near 2Gb/s was the fastest speed we saw, but since 5G is still new and still rolling out, there were inconsistencies.
Sometimes, a speed test on 5G could be under 100Mb/s, and then a retest right after would reach close to 1Gb/s. That's not unexpected because Verizon is using mmWave 5G that's super speedy, but can be impacted by nearby buildings, trees, windows, and sometimes, even heat from direct sunlight.
Verizon and other carriers have a lot of work to do on their 5G rollouts before 5G transfer speeds are ubiquitous, and even then, the highest speeds will be limited to urban areas due to the limitations of mmWave spectrum.
5G speeds in real world usage are impressive and are going to make the next-generation iPhones amazing. Streaming music and movies worked flawlessly, and we were even able to download an episode of Stranger Things (200 to 300MB) from Netflix in just a few seconds. PUBG, a 2Gb mobile game, downloaded nearly instantaneously on a 5G connection.
So when the 5G iPhones launch in 2020 and you're able to connect to a 5G network, you can expect flawless streaming, super fast download speeds for movies and games, instantly loading web pages, and more.
Verizon is still working on upload speeds, which are basically still relying on 4G and not taking advantage of 5G, but eventually, uploading content will be just as speedy.
Android manufacturers are rolling out 5G smartphones this year to be first, but iPhone users aren't likely missing much having to wait until 2020 just because 5G networks are still so limited and connectivity is still spotty as carriers like Verizon work to build out the connectivity.
Right now, Verizon is rolling out 5G to 30 cities, and it's available in Denver, Minneapolis, Providence, St. Paul, and Chicago, where we tested. It's not really clear what 5G pricing will be at when it's more widely available from all of the major carriers, but Verizon is so far saying it will be a $10 add-on to unlimited plans that currently start at $85 for a single line, although Verizon is waiving that fee during the early stages of the rollout.
For more on the 5G iPhone, the benefits of 5G, and how 5G will work, make sure to check out our 5G iPhone guide.
Article Link: Testing 5G: What 5G Speeds Will Be Like When the 2020 iPhones Launch
It's funny how people are saying I"don't see why this is necessary." I'm sure you'll be all excited about a 5G iPhone. Just because Apple is lagging doesn't mean it's not necessary.
Here in Australia every man and his dog is saying 5G is the answer to our broadband woes, except what they don't realise is that to get the sort of speeds they're talking about it means a tower pretty much in everyone's backyard. Don't think that will go down well with the environmentalists.
Pfffft. I work in Boston and live in a suburb on Route 128/I-95 that's ~13 miles away. VZW and ATT can't even provide continuous LTE coverage in this dense and relatively affluent market. Why on earth would I be excited about a technology with even less coverage per tower?
When many people talk about speed they were referring to the bandwidth, how much data (Mbps/Gbps) can be transmitted in a second. But it isn't the bandwidth that's going to make a real world difference to the daily uses. It's the latency (which is the time it takes the data to travel between your device to the carrier) so in a sense the latency is the "real" speed. Think the time it takes for your phone to load a page (or to connect to, say real time traffic on google map). 5G promised response time < 1ms, where as average latency on 4G is 53ms. This will enable real-time applications to be more "real-time".
And I don't know why they build 6 lane highways when my car only requires one lane.
Because that video, when downloaded over a faster connection, uses magnitudes more data? It really boggles my mind how people think that faster = more data for things with fixed sizes? It's JUST FASTER! SAME DATA!
If you drive a mile at 25mph and a mile at 75mph, did you go further when you drove at 75mph? Same distance, just did it faster.
I'm not worried about 5G radiation...there is so much radiation already in the air that if it's shortening my life, it's already happened by now.
Haha... I made it half way through the video. Couldn't take the super dramatic pauses. And I got the feeling he was about to pan down and show us his grapefruit sized gonads that the tech has given him....
Between the pauses and the hat it didn’t take long to realize this is not a person I should listen to regarding anything scientific. It’s amazing the amount of ignorance among the users of this “tech” comment forum.
History shows us the “S” versions after a major iPhone change— 3GS, 4s, and 6s—tend to be MUCH better than their initial counterparts.
I believe the best strategy is buy this year, let the early adopters suffer through the 12 and the slow 5G rollout in 2020, then get a much more refined 12s with better 5G network capacity.
Be a contrarian—always buy on the “S” years.
I agree. IF its anything like that installer video on page one of this thread it could lead to a plague on the world. Im not being light on this matter either. IT seems scary to think of the issues babies will have let alone the entire population if this is world wide.
I do get a little confused when people make comments like "What do I need THAT amount of speed for?" or "Im happy with my 4G" .. I am pretty old and I can tell you that I heard people making these statements about 56k when they had 14.4k modems.
These speeds and the continual pushing of the envelope have nothing to do with the internet of today and everything to do with the internet of tomorrow. Speed has always been a limiting factor in design of internet sites, tools and services. There are uses for this we have not even thought about today.
You will eventually want those speeds.
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These speeds and the continual pushing of the envelope have nothing to do with the internet of today and everything to do with the internet of tomorrow. Speed has always been a limiting factor in design of internet sites, tools and services. There are uses for this we have not even thought about today.
You will eventually want those speeds.
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Electrical engineer here. You are just wrong. Outright, utterly wrong. You have absolutely no idea what you are talking about. You are confusing the part of the spectrum that has frequencies in ultraviolet and above, which is cancer causing, with the frequency spectrums used in communications, which are all far below visible light, let alone ultraviolet. Ultraviolet is the invisible, and highest frequency part of sunlight, and can give you skin cancer. Higher frequencies than that include x-rays, gamma rays (from nuclear reactions), and cosmic rays (which are almost entirely blocked by the earth's atmosphere), all of which can also give you cancer. Visible light, and all the communications spectrum, are all of lower frequencies than ultraviolet, and can't give you cancer. That said, the spectrum below ultraviolet can cook you, but it has to be insanely higher energy levels than what is used in telecommunications (eg using a magnifying glass to magnify sunlight, or sticking your head inside a microwave oven (note: microwave ovens are definitely high enough power to cook you, but they are surrounded by a faraday cage - that metal grill covering the door, and the metal cage around the back and sides - which in the case of microwave frequency, the microwaves can't pass through a metal shield with holes smaller than 12cm diameter (the wavelength of typical microwaves in an oven)), or standing right next to the amplifier inside the generation room under a TV tower when it is turned on (it has to be turned off for anyone to do any maintenance work on it, and is locked out when it is turned on. The energy levels decrease by the inverse square law, so the energy levels quickly become very small by distance, and are completely safe after a certain distance)). Every single iteration of mobile phones has come with people worried about cancer, but it is all rubbish, and as you see around you, people aren't getting cancer from 1G, 2G, 3G, or 4G, and they won't from 5G either, or any other G after that.
It boggles my mind that the incredulity expressed by those expressing this same sentiment about downloads always fail to realize the worry is streaming, not downloading. Streaming an hour of music or a movie at 4G speeds is an entirely different animal than streaming an hour of music or a movie at 5G speeds. Same time frame, just used a crap ton more data.
Please explain? This is an actual question, because I see both ideas mentioned.
Which is correct? How do faster download speeds equate more data used? An hour of music or an hour of a movie(ie streaming)is an hour no matter how fast you download it right? The data size remains the same, or am
I missing something?
Misspoke... what I mean to say is... "Apple switching the iPhone to USB-C would be awful." The rest of the statement is true.
There are so many variables in real-world usage. Yes, more towers. Less penetration through structure walls. Higher cell bills. But what bothers me most is that many of these cell towers simply don't have the bandwidth they need for their active subscribers to start with.
I can't count the number of times I've had 5 bars, completely out in the open a thousand feet from a tower and yet was completely unable to even check email or load a web page. "You are not connected to the Internet" is a common occurrence on my iPhone XS in several locations here in Southern California.
It also burns me up that AT&T is calling their "interim" service "5G E" yet it's only just slightly faster than 4G (and still ranks third out of the four major carriers). See the OpenSignal.com analyses.
And yes, I constantly report slow data usage with their Mark the Spot app. Nothing ever improves.
I can't count the number of times I've had 5 bars, completely out in the open a thousand feet from a tower and yet was completely unable to even check email or load a web page. "You are not connected to the Internet" is a common occurrence on my iPhone XS in several locations here in Southern California.
It also burns me up that AT&T is calling their "interim" service "5G E" yet it's only just slightly faster than 4G (and still ranks third out of the four major carriers). See the OpenSignal.com analyses.
And yes, I constantly report slow data usage with their Mark the Spot app. Nothing ever improves.
This. Our bodies are already being effected by 4G and WiFi every ****ing place we go.
WHAT is the need for 5G? Who is seriously doing so many things with their phone that they need this? You can update a 250MB app in under a minute and that includes the installing time. HD Netflix streams in seconds.
I don’t get it. Maybe it’s a sign I’m getting older but I just don’t get it. It’s bizarre to me.
This sounds like they hooked up WiFi 6 to a fiber connection and named it 5G. Those 5G “towers” on the street light posts look like the cobbled together dusty mess of wires and boxes that I had behind my old PC ages ago. I just can’t wait for this rats nest on every street light in my subdivision like some dystopian hack job jerry-rigged straight out of the Fallout universe. They don’t even look weather resistant. I swear a squirrel is going to chew the hell out of those cables. What’s the point of this on a phone? I can’t wait to download my entire iTunes Movies library (or more likely use up my entire data plan, battery, and flash storage) in two minutes! I mean honestly. This seems like a better replacement for home internet if you get a lot of data with it. Though you know it’s not going to be 2Gbps for long once people start upgrading and there is real network traffic that isn’t limited to a few tech nerds edging to a bunch of speed tests all day.
At least 2 years before it's a game changer for the average user. And that's generous.
lots of infrastructure, backhaul, field devices and user experience to work out. Average user will have to be willing to stomach the bill (which will go up) and see it as a viable investment month to month.
With the widespread availability of WiFi, and only so much you can stream with improving video quality before its on your device in 6 seconds with ultimate clarity, it will be a hard sell for most.
Unless your local busybody HoseFrau simply can't wait an extra few milliseconds to troll the world on Facebook.....
lots of infrastructure, backhaul, field devices and user experience to work out. Average user will have to be willing to stomach the bill (which will go up) and see it as a viable investment month to month.
With the widespread availability of WiFi, and only so much you can stream with improving video quality before its on your device in 6 seconds with ultimate clarity, it will be a hard sell for most.
Unless your local busybody HoseFrau simply can't wait an extra few milliseconds to troll the world on Facebook.....