Samsung's new television ad promotes its 5G Galaxy phones
By now, you would have to be Rip Van Winkling your way through life not to know that wireless operators worldwide are building out their 5G networks. Why is 5G so important? As the next generation of wireless connectivity, 5G offers download data speeds 10 times faster than 4G LTE. That will help with the creation of new industries and technologies, most of which haven't even been thought of yet. Consider that the move from 3G to 4G LTE helped create the rideshare industry which has a pair of billion-dollar companies competing for business (Lyft and Uber). In other words, the countries that are first to embrace 5G will be the first to benefit from the coming 5G economic boom.
Now that's not to say that individuals won't see amazing changes as well. Videos that currently take minutes to download will take seconds to load on a 5G phone. In fact, that is one of the advantages of running a 5G Galaxy phone on a 5G network according to a new television commercial released Friday by Samsung. The timing of the spot coincides with the official release date of the company's latest flagship series, the Galaxy S20. The new line is comprised of three models, the Samsung Galaxy S20, the Galaxy S20+, and the Galaxy S20 Ultra 5G. All three phones are available with support for 5G.
Not all 5G networks are the same
Besides rapid downloads of streaming video content, Samsung points out that its Galaxy 5G phones will also be able to offer faster video gaming, enhanced video chats, and more immersive live events. In the commercial, Samsung shows a Galaxy 5G user sitting on a bus while at the same time she is able to experience a live concert through her phone (and view it from any seat in the house).
Right now, not everyone's 5G experience is going to be the same; much depends on their wireless provider. T-Mobile was the first to launch nationwide 5G service in the states thanks to the use of its low-band 600MHz spectrum. These airwaves have the advantage of traveling farther than high-band signals which is why T-Mobile already covers 200 million Americans with 5G. And while these low-band airwaves penetrate structures better than high-band signals do, they cannot offer the blazing-fast download speeds that high-band mmWave spectrum delivers. In addition, mmWave signals can carry more traffic and provide lower latency. That means that the time it takes to send data from one device to another is shorter. Low latency is one of the features of 5G that could lead to driverless vehicles.
Verizon is advertising that its 5G network is "Built Right." The nation's largest carrier is talking about the use of mmWave spectrum to build its 5G network. While this will require Verizon to spend more time to complete the network, when it is finished it will deliver faster download data speeds than the competition. Last month, Open Signal released the results of its real-world tests and Verizon's 5G network, using mmWave spectrum, had the fastest average download data speed in the states at 722.9Mbps. T-Mobile's 600MHz 5G network had an average download speed of 47.5Mbps. Sprint's 2.5GHz mid-band 5G signal (which will soon belong to T-Mobile) averaged 183Mbps down and AT&T's consumer 5G service, using its 850MHz spectrum, recorded an average download data speed of 59.3Mbps.
There is a long way to go before the next generation of wireless connectivity starts to reach its potential. But 5G is available now and with the Galaxy S20 series officially released, you can now own a phone that supports both mmWave 5G signals and signals produced by sub-6GHz networks. The question is whether you want to spend big bucks now for technology that is clearly in its infancy. Samsung is hoping that this commercial will motivate you to make the switch to 5G now.
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