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Other 5G - is it worth it?

M

Mac2019

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Feb 12, 2016
621
228
Whilst I am in the midst of a decision about whether to keep my pro max, I wonder if it is worth waiting for 5G? A few questions:
- will it really be much more expensive than 4g? A quick look at the Vodafone website suggests not.
- for general day to day use, will it be worth the wait? How much quicker do we need web pages to load, for example?
- would it be worth waiting for iPhone to iron out any creases (so upgrade in 2021) before switching to a 5G iPhone?
- will 3 and 4G get worse due to more focus being on 5G? Or could speeds improve as some people on 4G now will be on 5G?

Any other considerations I have missed here?
 
- More expensive, yes, but the amount depends. In Europe (Austria), the first 5G data plans are around 50 % more expensive than what we are currently used to.
- Most likely. 5G isn't about speed only - if you have lots of users in the same place like public hotspots, stadiums etc., 5G is better for serving many clients at once. Speed is nice to have, too. I wouldn't want go back to 3G speeds myself.
- I would wait until 5G penetration is actually there. In my country we have 5G hotspots in the single digits, so I would not have 5G most of the time. When 5G is available everywhere, you should get a phone accordingly. The longer you wait, the better the tech becomes.
- No, 5G uses another frequency so 3G and 4G are not affected. (EDIT: Yes, if lots of persons switch from 3G/4G to 5G the frequencies would be not as used, possibly leading to higher speeds in these frequencies. All depends on the current usage where you are, though.)

Last but not least: 5G is not dangerous to our health. We are using way lower and higher frequencies for years now (TV, radio, 5 GHz networks, satellites, ...) and nothing has happened.
 
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MandiMac said:
Pics or it didn't happen :D
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1580386119040.jpeg


(With thanks to DuckDuckGo image search!)
 
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I'm gonna wait for a 5G iPhone before upgrading from my X. Sure, there may not be much 5G coverage yet but don't forget it's gonna be at least until September before it's even released and *then* I'm likely gonna hold onto it for 3 years.

The coverage situation might be very different in your area (Europe) in a year and you'll be glad you have it. At the very least, in NYC 5G is appearing at large indoor and outdoor event spaces. With LTE, my iPhone is often unusable with everyone hitting the tower. When we have 5G, that apparently won't be the case.
 
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barkomatic said:
I'm gonna wait for a 5G iPhone before upgrading from my X. Sure, there may not be much 5G coverage yet but don't forget it's gonna be at least until September before it's even released and *then* I'm likely gonna hold onto it for 3 years.

The coverage situation might be very different in your area (Europe) in a year and you'll be glad you have it. At the very least, in NYC 5G is appearing at large indoor and outdoor event spaces. With LTE, my iPhone is often unusable with everyone hitting the tower. When we have 5G, that apparently won't be the case.
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Yes, you will be able to use the little 5G coverage that is out there currently. But it doesn't negate the point that the current 5G chips are very power-hungry in comparison to our current LTE/4G chips - something another year of research and chip-making will solve.

You're right though - if the current usage is really not possible because of everyone hitting the tower, these troubles should be relieved. If it has nothing to do with the tower, but the provider instead - that would be a bummer.
 
MandiMac said:
- Most likely. 5G isn't about speed only - if you have lots of users in the same place like public hotspots, stadiums etc., 5G is better for serving many clients at once. Speed is nice to have, too. I wouldn't want go back to 3G speeds myself.
Click to expand...
This exactly. You'd be lucky to get 2G/EDGE speeds with some carriers in dense areas. Heck, at work, it's always timeouts and buffering on YouTube 360p during break times on T-Mobile. Even normal webpages time out.

I've been to Anime Expo at the LA Convention Center a few years ago and practically all carriers were unusable.
 
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Mac2019 said:
Whilst I am in the midst of a decision about whether to keep my pro max, I wonder if it is worth waiting for 5G? A few questions:
- will it really be much more expensive than 4g? A quick look at the Vodafone website suggests not.
- for general day to day use, will it be worth the wait? How much quicker do we need web pages to load, for example?
- would it be worth waiting for iPhone to iron out any creases (so upgrade in 2021) before switching to a 5G iPhone?
- will 3 and 4G get worse due to more focus being on 5G? Or could speeds improve as some people on 4G now will be on 5G?

Any other considerations I have missed here?
Click to expand...
My best advice would be just wait and see what happens. In my geographical location, it was a while before we had reliable LTE/4G connectivity. Even now, it's sketchy at best. So I for one, am not in a rush for a 5G capable phone. But hey, that's just me.
 
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The-Real-Deal82 said:
I’m not particularly happy with the lack of info on whether 5G is safe or not yet. I’m happy to disable it on my device should it be available at no extra cost for now.
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It is safe. We use both way lower and way higher frequencies for decades now. We use these for UKW, TV, 5 GHz WiFi networks, radio and more. It‘s like saying "going 30 is safe, going 200 is safe, but going 75 is going to get you!" Nothing happened up to now, so why should 5G change anything?

Here are some comparisons:

6382C2E1-F1AA-444A-86DD-DFA0043B0454.pngD4E5ED16-E92F-4CCA-99F9-17D039078994.png
 
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Is it worth it? Only if you're in an area like SE Asia where 5G deployment has already happened.

As for bugs? 5G chipsets are already 3rd gen. Similar to the LTE chipset in iPhone 5. No real issues.
 
JPack said:
Is it worth it? Only if you're in an area like SE Asia where 5G deployment has already happened.

As for bugs? 5G chipsets are already 3rd gen. Similar to the LTE chipset in iPhone 5. No real issues.
Click to expand...
It has happened in some parts of the UK and is happening more this year so why wouldn't it be worth it in September of this year?
 
DevinNj said:
My best advice would be just wait and see what happens. In my geographical location, it was a while before we had reliable LTE/4G connectivity. Even now, it's sketchy at best. So I for one, am not in a rush for a 5G capable phone. But hey, that's just me.
Click to expand...
Yea and this time around it isn't even starting in Philly. It still took at least two years to get 4G LTE, and that launched in Philly.
 
compwiz1202 said:
Yea and this time around it isn't even starting in Philly. It still took at least two years to get 4G LTE, and that launched in Philly.
Click to expand...
I know the struggle, I'm in rural northern Jersey, I remember the first time when I cracked triple digits on 4g LTE, I had to drive about 20 min east, towards NYC. Months and months later and I still don't see those speeds where I live.
 
I just hope by the time the new phones are out 5G will actually still be useable. I know where I live we have it in some areas but the level of it I don't know how far.
 
I read somewhere that, at least at this time, 5g is very poor at penetration inside buildings. Better at short distances.

Any current users see this?
 
I also wish I could be more excited for 5G. Based on how long it took for me to even see 4G that excitement is tremendously diminished.
 
m0sher said:
I also wish I could be more excited for 5G. Based on how long it took for me to even see 4G that excitement is tremendously diminished.
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I think the main benefit of 5G is in heavily congested areas.

I'm always amazed when I see people posting triple digits LTE speeds. Where I'm located, during busy times of the day I'd often see 2Mbps down, 0.5Mbps up with high latency.
 
From everything I have read here in the US we are 3-5 years away from any real usable 5g depending on where you live. That's why this year I plan on getting an 11 Pro. By the time there is a reason to get a 5g phone I will be ready for a new phone anyways.

Besides, I don't want an early gen 5g phone. The Android phones that have them that they tested in 5g areas, the phone ran very hot and battery life was horrendous.
 
rui no onna said:
I think the main benefit of 5G is in heavily congested areas.

I'm always amazed when I see people posting triple digits LTE speeds. Where I'm located, during busy times of the day I'd often see 2Mbps down, 0.5Mbps up with high latency.
Click to expand...
Same. I got this today. Garbage.
 

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