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Ask HN: Is it just me or is 5G strictly worse than LTE?

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Re: Ask HN: Is it just me or is 5G strictly worse than LTE?

#111

Post by tremere »

raverbashing wrote: post #104
tremere wrote: post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why would I want to replace my home internet with something less secure, less reliable, lossier, and slower?

The same arguments apply to wireless headphones. (And I'm not disagreeing with you)

No, that's specious. The user experience matters a lot more when using headphones. The weight and tension and tethered nature of a wire degrade the user experience when it comes to an apparatus that goes on your head.

In contrast, I personally do not derive any pleasure from liberating my home internet gateway from a cable that goes to the wall.

Re: Ask HN: Is it just me or is 5G strictly worse than LTE?

#112

Post by harpratap »

Animats wrote: post #89
kjellsbells wrote: post #45

Having the 5G logo on your phone doesnt necessarily mean your phone is speaking 5G. It's...complicated. - Most US operators do not have ubiquitous 5G radio coverage, so, they do what is called 5G NSA where your traffic ultimately ends up veing processed by the 4G core infrastructure that they have. Which is already overloaded and a bit creaky. - Some operators can do real 5G, "5G SA", where the whole flow end to end…

> Telcos desperately need a killer app or use case that drives 5G adoption. They haven't got one. * Self driving cars? No. * Internet of Things? No. * Metaverse? No. * Remote surgical operations? You gotta be kidding. Everyone in a big stadium can watch the show on their phones, though. If someone was willing to pay for the hundreds of tiny cell sites required.

> If someone was willing to pay for the hundreds of tiny cell sites required.

We are already doing that, it's called WiFi. 5G SA is nothing but a souped up WiFi signal, and it should be treated as such and not how we have been treating 4G up until this point. Telcos need to change their business model otherwise the tech giants might end up eating their lunch

Re: Ask HN: Is it just me or is 5G strictly worse than LTE?

#114

Post by mynameisvlad »

mattmaroon wrote: post #107
gmokki wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wireless consumes more energy. So it is more enironmentally friendly to go with wires, especially fiber. Personally I like to have both, wired main connection and wireless as backup.

Is it though? What’s the environmental footprint of manufacturing, installing, and maintaining all of those wires?

While not as much, installing and maintaining the 5G endpoints also requires all that, and they generally have to be wired to achieve low latency, meshing only does so much and the speed of light is going to win out for backhauls.

Re: Ask HN: Is it just me or is 5G strictly worse than LTE?

#116

Post by adgjlsfhk1 »

mattmaroon wrote: post #107
gmokki wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wireless consumes more energy. So it is more enironmentally friendly to go with wires, especially fiber. Personally I like to have both, wired main connection and wireless as backup.

Is it though? What’s the environmental footprint of manufacturing, installing, and maintaining all of those wires?

A lot lower than manufacturing chips to do the complex signal processing needed for fast and reliable wireless.

Re: Ask HN: Is it just me or is 5G strictly worse than LTE?

#117

Post by baxtr »

kjellsbells wrote: post #45

Having the 5G logo on your phone doesnt necessarily mean your phone is speaking 5G. It's...complicated. - Most US operators do not have ubiquitous 5G radio coverage, so, they do what is called 5G NSA where your traffic ultimately ends up veing processed by the 4G core infrastructure that they have. Which is already overloaded and a bit creaky. - Some operators can do real 5G, "5G SA", where the whole flow end to end…

Worked in Telco too.

I always wondered if it wasn’t enough to have 1 infrastructure provider like with streets or anything else. Why build the infrastructure twice or three times?

Re: Ask HN: Is it just me or is 5G strictly worse than LTE?

#118

Post by anderspitman »

kpozin wrote: post #44

I have a Pixel 6A on T-Mobile. I keep 5G turned off because it's usually slower and flakier than LTE, visibly chews through the battery (a percentage point every couple of minutes), and heats up the phone.

Anyone know if there's a way to disable 5G on a Pixel 7? Using Visible, a Verizon MVNO.

Re: Ask HN: Is it just me or is 5G strictly worse than LTE?

#119

Post by throwanem »

baxtr wrote: post #117
kjellsbells wrote: post #45

Having the 5G logo on your phone doesnt necessarily mean your phone is speaking 5G. It's...complicated. - Most US operators do not have ubiquitous 5G radio coverage, so, they do what is called 5G NSA where your traffic ultimately ends up veing processed by the 4G core infrastructure that they have. Which is already overloaded and a bit creaky. - Some operators can do real 5G, "5G SA", where the whole flow end to end…

Worked in Telco too. I always wondered if it wasn’t enough to have 1 infrastructure provider like with streets or anything else. Why build the infrastructure twice or three times?

Wash your mouth out with soap. I live in Baltimore - if cell towers here got fixed at the same rate our roads do, we'd be an unofficial annex of the National Radio Quiet Zone.

Re: Ask HN: Is it just me or is 5G strictly worse than LTE?

#120

Post by anderspitman »

posguy wrote: post #29
anderspitman wrote: post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm on Visible, which is a Verizon MVNO.

What make and model is your phone? Visible is a deprioritized version of Verizon's cellular network, so when your on a busy tower you will see slower speeds than postpaid Verizon Wireless customers. Verizon also happens to have the slowest network over the last few years since they have the most customers using it (nearly 130 million users) and smaller spectrum holdings than the other two major cellular networks. Ver…

Thanks for the info.

I'm on a Pixel 7. Honestly I'd like to try disabling 5G but haven't been able to find a way yet.

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