PC Magazine - USA (2020-10)

NEW YORK CITY: VERIZON WIRELESS
1HZ<RUNKDVRQHRIWKHPRVWFRPSOH[QHWZRUNOD\RXWVLQWKHFRXQWU\3&0DJ¶V
home city has AT&T low-band 5G, all three layers of T-Mobile 5G, and Verizon
5G as well. AT&T’s network here is fragmented over several frequency bands.

9HUL]RQ¶VQHWZRUNUHDOO\GHWHUPLQHGLWVZLQ,WZDVVLJQL¿FDQWO\IDVWHUDQG
more reliable than either of its competitors in New York, with speeds of up to
0ESVWKDWH[FHHGHGZKDW,¶GH[SHFWIURPPLGEDQG9HUL]RQ¶VIHDWLQ
New York is even more impressive because it’s getting many of those speeds on
50MHz of traditional licensed spectrum, without using any 4G-enhancing
gimmicks like CBRS or LAA (using Wi-Fi spectrum).

Although Verizon says it has 5G scattered around New York City, we weren’t
impressed. We only saw it at 3.6 percent of locations and at none of our
stationary locations, and because all of the Verizon 5G tests were moving, we
got relatively low speeds. (High-band 5G doesn’t cope well with moving.)
6RPHWLPHVLWZDVUHDOO\FORVHWRRXUVWDWLRQDU\ORFDWLRQVWKRXJK)RUH[DPSOH
we did one set of tests at 155th Street and Amsterdam Avenue in Manhattan on
4G, but there was 5G just around the corner at 153rd and Broadway, our phones
discovered on the way out.

AT&T actually found itself dragged down by its 5G performance. Pure 4G
VSHHGVFDPHLQDW0ESVGRZQLQWKHSHUFHQWRIRXUWHVWVZKHUHRXU*
phone said it was getting 5G, it got a mere 41Mbps down. I’ve seen this
KDSSHQLQJLQUHFHQWSKRQHUHYLHZVDQG,KDYHVRPHSRWHQWLDOH[SODQDWLRQV
You can’t currently combine low-band 4G and 5G. AT&T is using a very narrow
5MHz channel for low-band 5G in New York, and often that replaces a broader
10MHz channel of 4G. Phones are also able to combine fewer 4G carriers when
5G is present, so if the new 5G carrier is very narrow (as AT&T’s is), they
actually lose performance over using multiple 4G carriers.

Pho

to^ c

redi

t:^ V_

E/sh

utte

rsto

ck.c

om