When it comes to purchasing a smartphone, the most natural thing is that multiple doubts and factors arise whose analysis and conclusions will end up determining the phone model we will acquire. But now in this 2022 it would be very prudent to add a new question to the questionnaire: how important is it that it supports networks 5G.
It is very likely that in recent months we have seen advertisements from a national mobile operator on social networks or mass media already talking about the integration of this new network into its infrastructure.
At the same time we see new smartphone models that already have support for 5G networks and that are quite noisy to announce it as an important detail.
Another detail that you will probably have noticed is that currently in the market all phones that support 5G networks are much more expensive than some mid-range models with less features that are not ready for this network.
Here we try to explain the real relevance of this factor today to decide if it is time to invest in those cell phones or not.
How important is the 5G network in Latin America really?
First, let’s start with the basics, laying out the guiding concept for those who have not had the opportunity to learn more about this platform.
We could say that the 5G network is the fifth generation of cellular technology. It is specially designed to increase mobile browsing speed, reduce voice and data latency, and also improve the flexibility of wireless services.
In theory, the maximum speed of this type of network can reach up to 20 Gigabytes per second, or 20 Gbps, while the maximum speed of 4G technology is only 1 Gbps.
The speed jump is brutal while the latency is reduced quite a bit, which would mean a new era for the use of apps, online games and video conferences. But its true vocation is found in the future with the Internet of Things.
However, there is a stage of absolute transition towards that point in the industry and market, so there is still a long way to go before reaching the climatic moment of 5G.
For example, in Mexico the 5G network made its arrival official at the beginning of this year 2022 through the mobile operator of América Móvil: Telcel.
However, users in the main cities of the country who have a smartphone ready for this telecommunications technology will be able to verify that the matter is somewhat hypothetical.
The mobile connection to the 5G network is quite intermittent and only occurs in some central areas of certain states. So it could be considered more in a testing phase.
A device with a 4G connection is quite fast for downloading data, streaming video and sending messages, so much so that for most common tasks today 5G is barely noticeable.
Situation that will change radically when playing video games online or using apps that demand high use of our mobile connection.
So, in 2022, the acquisition of a smartphone with support for 5G networks actually represents a move that advocates guaranteeing the non-obsolescence of the phone by the time of full deployment of this network.