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5G networks meet consumer needs as mobile data growth slows

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Re: 5G networks meet consumer needs as mobile data growth slows

#81

Post by spacemanspiff01 »

AkshayGenius wrote: post #69

Is there a reason we keep trying to use higher frequencies in every new wireless standard (Wi-Fi, 5G, now 6G) instead of trying to increase the maximum possible bitrate per second into lower frequencies? Have we already reached the physical limits of the amount of data the can be encoded at a particular frequency? Lower frequencies have the advantage of longer distances and permeating through obstructions better. I s…

In addition to what others have said, Often from a network perspective you want smaller range.

At the end of the day, there is a total speed limit of Mb/s/Hz.

For example, in cities, with a high population density, you could theoretically have a single cell tower providing data for everyone.

However, the speed would be slow, as for a given bandwidth six the data is shared between everyone in the city.

Alternatively, one could have 100 towers, and then the data would only have to be shared by those within range. But for this to work, one of the design constraints is that a smaller range is beneficial, so that multiple towers do not interfere with each other.

Re: 5G networks meet consumer needs as mobile data growth slows

#82

Post by dylan604 »

James_K wrote: post #40
fkyoureadthedoc wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's any of that have to do with 5G? On 2 bars of 5G right now and I get 650Mbit download speed, it's significantly faster than 4G.

The last bit is just stuff I wanted to whine about. I obviously know it is faster, you don't need to explain that concept. I have just never had need of any significant internet speed on my phone. I don't download things, and only sometimes stream video. Most of the time I am just checking emails, or calendars, or something trivial like that. Unless I do some kind of benchmark, I can't notice the difference between 4…

If 5G lived up to everything it was touted to do, you could use a 5G hotspot for your home internet would could be a huge positive in areas that only have one ISP available. However, 5G does not live up to the promises, and your traffic is much more heavily shaped than non-wireless ISPs.

Re: 5G networks meet consumer needs as mobile data growth slows

#83

Post by jlokier »

crazygringo wrote: post #37
ctoth wrote: post #12

Tell me you've never backed up a NAS or downloaded a multi-hundred-gigabyte game without telling me!

You shouldn't be doing either of things over mobile, except as a last resort. The article is about mobile specifically.

If I want to download a multi-hundred-gigabyte anything, I switch to my mobile and turn on it's Wi-Fi hotspot. It's a really noticable speed improvement, with the caveat that speed varies a lot according to location and time of day.

My phone, a mid-range Android from 3 years ago, usually downloads over 4G much faster than any of the wired or fibre networks I have access too, including the supposedly newly installed dual fibre links at work, or the "superfast broadband" zone at my local library. It's also much faster than the 4G router at home.

I've downloaded terabytes over my phone, including LLM weights, and my provider's "unlimited" data plan seems fine with it. (They say 3TB/month in the small print.)

Re: 5G networks meet consumer needs as mobile data growth slows

#84

Post by bilater »

It's rare I come across something so myopic, unimaginative and laughable. This will age as well as the Paul Krugman prediction:"the Internet's impact on the economy has been no greater than the fax machine's". We have not even begun to explore the Uber/Airbnb applications of a 6G+ world. And the VR bandwidth ceiling lazy thought is an extension of the limited mindset of this author.

Re: 5G networks meet consumer needs as mobile data growth slows

#85

Post by repeekad »

ai-christianson wrote: post #79
sidewndr46 wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I can pretty much guarantee you that your 5G connection has more bandwidth for upload than my residential ISP does

Yeah? We're getting 30-50 mbit/sec per connection on a good day.

In downtown Columbus Ohio the only internet provider (Spectrum) maxes out at maybe 5 mbps up (down 50-100x that), it's not just a rural issue, non-competitive ISPs even in urban cities want you to pay for business accounts to get any kind of upload whatsoever

Re: 5G networks meet consumer needs as mobile data growth slows

#86

Post by kinematicgps99 »

What we really need is pervasive low data rate backup systems for text messaging and low fidelity emergency calls that don't kill handset batteries. If this means "Starlink" and/or lower frequency bands (<400 MHz): the more options, the merrier for safety. Perhaps there may come a time where no one needs an EPIRB/ELT because that functionality is totally subsumed by smartphones offering equal or superior performance.

Re: 5G networks meet consumer needs as mobile data growth slows

#87

Post by nightpool »

ai-christianson wrote: post #79
sidewndr46 wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I can pretty much guarantee you that your 5G connection has more bandwidth for upload than my residential ISP does

Yeah? We're getting 30-50 mbit/sec per connection on a good day.

Yes, many residential broadband ISPs top out at 1/10th that.

Re: 5G networks meet consumer needs as mobile data growth slows

#88

Post by pr337h4m »

>Regulators may also have to consider whether fewer operators may be better for a country, with perhaps only a single underlying fixed and mobile network in many places—just as utilities for electricity, water, gas, and the like are often structured around single (or a limited set of) operators.

There are no words to describe how stupid this is.

Re: 5G networks meet consumer needs as mobile data growth slows

#89

Post by toast0 »

ai-christianson wrote: post #61

We live in a rural location, so we have redundant 5G/Starlink. It's getting pretty reasonable these days, with download speeds reaching 0.5 gbit/sec per link, and latency is acceptable at ~20ms. The main challenge is the upload speed; pretty much all the ISPs allocate much more spectrum for download rather than upload. If we could improve one thing with future wireless tech, I think upload would be a great candidate.

> The main challenge is the upload speed; pretty much all the ISPs allocate much more spectrum for download rather than upload.

For 5G, a lot of the spectrum is statically split into downstream and upstream in equal bandwidth. But equal radio bandwidth doesn't mean equal data rates. Downstream speeds are typically higher because multiplexing happens at one fixed point, instead of over multiple, potentially moving transmitters.

Re: 5G networks meet consumer needs as mobile data growth slows

#90

Post by orev »

ai-christianson wrote: post #61

We live in a rural location, so we have redundant 5G/Starlink. It's getting pretty reasonable these days, with download speeds reaching 0.5 gbit/sec per link, and latency is acceptable at ~20ms. The main challenge is the upload speed; pretty much all the ISPs allocate much more spectrum for download rather than upload. If we could improve one thing with future wireless tech, I think upload would be a great candidate.

You identified the problem in your statement: “the ISPs allocate…”. The provider gets to choose this, and if more bandwidth is available from a newer technology, they’re incentive is to allocate it to downloads so they can advertise faster speeds. It’s not a technology issue.
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