Verizon made a splash at the October Apple Event by announcing their expanded 5G network. Each of the major wireless carriers have now made announcements promoting their “nationwide” 5G. However, you shouldn't get too excited yet. In this article, we'll tell you the truth about Verizon's Nationwide 5G network.
High-Band vs. Low-Band 5G
Despite what carriers want you to believe, not all 5G is the same. There are three distinct 5G bands, and all of them different speeds and range.
The fastest 5G data network is mmWave, high-band 5G. This is the type of 5G data that you'll often see in commercials outclassing 4G LTE in speed. What carriers don't tell you is that high-band 5G has extremely limited range, and it can't even penetrate walls. High-band 5G is only available in select major cities and sporting arenas.
Verizon does have some mmWave, high-band 5G. It's only available in sixty cities, so most people won't have access to it. Even if you're in one of the select locations where high-band 5G is accessible, you'll only be able to use it in specific places while outdoors.
Low-band 5G is significantly slower than mmWave 5G. While low-band does have a wider range than any other 5G data networks, there's nothing new or exceptional about this technology. The old-school box televisions with rabbit ear antennas transmitted over the exact frequency carriers are using for low-band 5G today.
The third band of 5G is called mid-band. It's a good balance of faster speeds with decent range. We think this 5G will be most useful for average consumers. Unfortunately, it's not widely available yet, but T-Mobile is leading the way. The Uncarrier plans to deliver mid-band 5G to 100 million people by the end of 2020.
Check out our other article learn more about 5G and the differences between high-band, mid-band, and low-band in our article all about how these networks work with your cell phone!
The Truth About Verizon's “Nationwide” 5G
Verizon nationwide 5G is really just low-band 5G. It appears Verizon is trying to convince their customers that their new Nationwide 5G will have comparable speed and strength to their previously marketed high-band networks, but this simply isn't true.
Verizon's Nationwide 5G speeds aren't particularly impressive, and their geographic availability seriously stretches their “nationwide” designation. However, that's not to discredit Verizon's coverage as a whole.
Verizon has the best 4G LTE coverage among the major wireless carriers. Speed tests have found that Verizon 4G LTE is sometimes faster than T-Mobile low-band 5G.
Nationwide 5G? Not So Fast!
It's easy to get lost in the hype surrounding 5G. We're really excited about mid-band 5G, but it'll be awhile before that's widely available. Leave a comment below to let us know how you feel about 5G!
