But what is 5G actually for? (And will you notice the difference?)
It is printed on every tariff and every new phone. What it actually does, when you genuinely feel the difference, and when you are paying for a label you would never use.
- Level
- principiante
- Time
- 10 minutes
- What you need
- Nothing
It is on the phone box, on mobile tariffs, on billboards. 5G is the fifth generation of mobile networks, the system your phone uses to talk to the masts. Before it came 3G, which is when we started browsing, and 4G, which is when we started watching video.
The right question is not “what is it”, it is: will I notice?
Mobile network: the link between your phone and your operator's masts, the one you use when you are not on Wi-Fi. Data allowance: how much data your plan lets you use each month. 5G does not eat more data for the same activity: it is faster, not hungrier, although being faster it does tempt you into higher-quality video, and that does eat data.
What it actually does
Three things, and you only feel one of them daily.
It is faster. In good conditions, much faster than 4G. In practice: a film downloads in a minute instead of ten.
It answers quicker. This is the least-discussed part and the most useful: the gap between tapping and something happening gets shorter. It is why a video call on 5G feels more natural, with fewer of those awkward moments where you both talk at once.
It copes with crowds. In a stadium, in a square during a concert, at the station on a bank holiday, 4G jams because thousands of phones want the same mast. 5G handles far more of them. Anyone who has tried to send a message at midnight on New Year’s Eve knows the feeling.
When you genuinely notice
You notice if you download large things on the move: updates, podcasts for the journey, films to watch on the train. You notice in a crowd, which is where the difference is sharpest. And you notice if you use your phone as a connection for your laptop via hotspot, because there the extra speed turns into work done instead of waiting.
You do not notice if you use your phone for messages, social media, maps, music and the occasional video. 4G already does those well, and faster does not mean different: a photo already leaves WhatsApp in a second, and sending it in half a second will not change your day.
The "5G" in your home Wi-Fi network name has nothing to do with this. They are two different things that unfortunately sound almost identical: that one is a router band, this one is a mobile network.
Two catches worth knowing
The first: coverage is not uniform. In big cities 5G is nearly everywhere; in smaller towns and valleys the phone often displays 5G while actually leaning on 4G infrastructure, with 4G performance. Before paying for 5G, check your operator’s coverage map at your home address and your work address: it is on their website, and the result is often a surprise.
The second: “5G” on a tariff is not always real 5G. Many operators sell “5G” plans with a speed cap, say 100 Mbps, which is a good 4G speed. If you are paying extra for 5G, look at the maximum speed written in the terms, not just the label on the poster.
What about battery?
It is true that 5G uses a little more power, especially where the signal is weak and the phone strains to hold on to it. If you are in patchy coverage and your battery dies earlier than usual, try limiting the phone to 4G: Settings > Mobile network (or Cellular) > Preferred network type. You can switch back whenever you like.
If battery life interests you, we collected seven habits that make it last longer.
If the phone you already own is 5G and your tariff includes it at no extra cost, use it and think no more about it. If they want to charge extra, first check coverage where you live and how much data you actually use: for anyone using their phone for messages, maps and social media, 4G is still more than enough and 5G is a label you pay for without using. It is not reason enough to change phone: it is reason enough to prefer it, at the same price, when you change anyway.
One thing 5G really does solve
There is one case where 5G is the answer rather than a detail: homes fibre never reached. Home internet over 5G, with a router that picks up the signal from the mast instead of a cable, beats old copper broadband in many areas and needs no installation work.
Before choosing it, though, test the signal in that exact room, not in the town generally: these offers almost always come with a trial period, and that is what it is for. And if your problem is that the internet is slow but you do have a line, first read the six checks to make: the culprit is often a router in the wrong place.