‘Like using a Ferrari in your local village’: US networks won’t keep up with new iPhone’s 5G, analysts say

US networks are unlikely to be able to facilitate Apple’s newest Iphone’s 5G speeds, analysts have said.

The tech companies newest phone would theoretically allow users to access fifth generation wireless technology which operates as much as 10 to 20 times faster than current 4G wireless networks.

However, current 5G US networks mostly use a slower low-band wireless spectrum that is more reliable over longer distances.

Boris Metodiev, associate director of research firm Strategy Analytics said having 5G in the US would be “like having a Ferrari ... but using it in your local village and you can’t drive to up to 200 miles per hour, simply because the roads cannot maintain those speeds.”

The fastest speeds touted by carriers are a type of 5G called millimeter Wave, or mmWave, that work over shorter distances.

Verizon Communications Inc has the largest current mmWave network, available only in limited areas.  

Verizon 5G users could connect almost 10 times faster than on Sprint and T-Mobile but actual average speeds were far lower, according to research firm OpenSignal’s mobile signal experience report in June.

The iPhone is set to be released at a virtual event on Tuesday. Geoff Blaber, vice president of research at CCS Insight warned that “there’s going to be relatively little that you can do on a 5G iPhone you can’t do on a 4G iPhone today.”

Additionally, applications utilising higher speeds to deliver new programmes and applications will not be created until the technology is released.

“The applications we will be dazzled by, that will really take advantage of the network, will only be developed once the network and devices are available,” said Morgan Kurk, chief technology officer of CommScope, a telecom equipment maker.

Reuters