4G vs. 5G Networks Comparison: What You Need to Know

One of the latest developments in cellular networks is 5G. However, what exactly is it, and how is it different from 4G? Find out the answer by reading this article.

5G vs. 4G

5G refers to the fifth generation of wireless cellular technology. It is designed to have faster speed and responsiveness. It also works best on unlimited internet home plans as it uses an OFDM which is a type of encoding, which is quite similar to the 4G LTE encoding but with an air interface which has lower latency and more flexibility. 

The 5G technology carries more airwaves options compared to the 4G networks. It has “high-band” and short-range airwaves that was not a feature of the 4G network. However, 5G can still run on any frequency, so there are 3 categories of 5G experiences; low, middle, and high. 

Low-band 5G

This type of 5G experience operates under 2GHz. These are considered to be among the oldest TV and cellular frequencies. Although it can go a great distance, there are not many wide channels available since many of those are utilized for 4g. This means that low-band 5G is actually quite slow and has similar experience quality as 4G. 

Mid-band 5G

This type operates in a 2 to 10 GHz range. It covers most internet plans, Wi-Fi, and cellular frequency. At the same time, it also includes those that are slightly above the Wi-Fi and cellular frequencies. 

The mid-band 5G has a decent tower range which is often half a mile. These are considered to be what carries most of the 5G network traffic. 

High-band 5G

High-band is also referred to as millimeter wave. Most people’s assumptions about 5G are mostly referring to this type of 5G experience. 

This works on 20 to 100GHz airwaves range. These airwaves were not available for the public range before, and they are quite short range. They only work an 800-foot distance from the towers. But, there is plenty of unused spectrum, which means it is quite fast. 

4G networks are able to combine 7, 20MHz channels. It can use a total of 140 MHZ spectrum. But, most phones only use 60MHz or even less. 

The 5G networks are not necessarily faster than the 4G if they are on the same old radio channels. However, the 5G specs of the latest mobile devices allow it to use more channels across different frequency ranges. 

In Conclusion: Is 5G better than 4G? 

When choosing your cellular internet plans, you may be asking whether you should go for 4G or 5G devices. In this case, if paying extra is fine for you, and you want faster internet speed or even unlimited internet home plans, then the 5G network is definitely a good choice. 

The 5G network can be 5 times faster than the 4G. This is all thanks to the fact that it uses higher frequencies and smaller wavelengths. 

However, if your area is not 5G ready, opting for 4G devices is not bad. You would also definitely save a few bucks by doing this. Besides, the 5G network is only just starting, so there’s still a lack of infrastructure in some areas.