By building a "nationwide" low-band 5G network first and quickly adding a significantly faster mid-band layer on top of that in many places around the country, T-Mobile has managed to gain a massive lead over its arch-rivals in terms of both speeds and service availability while also escaping all the recent aerial controversy.
That's at least in theory, because in practice, this week's hubbub surrounding Verizon and AT&T's long overdue 5G expansions is likely to have indirectly harmed the mass appeal of T-Mo's most advanced cellular technologies as well.
After all, most "regular" smartphone users in the US are unlikely to be sufficiently well-informed to understand the difference between Magenta's Ultra Capacity 5G and Big Red's 5G Ultra Wideband signals... or even be aware that there is a crucial distinction to begin with.
To be perfectly honest, these 5G rollouts, their restrictions, and the strengths and weaknesses of every different 5G flavor have also been getting harder and harder to follow for yours truly, making Neville Ray's latest T-Mobile Network blog post particularly illuminating.
The "Un-carrier's" President of Technology does an excellent job of briefly summing up exactly "what's going on" with 5G, airplanes, and airports stateside while quickly and clearly answering a few other key questions T-Mo subscribers might have on their mind.
Does T-Mobile use C-band 5G?
No, it does not. Or rather not yet, with plans to deploy spectrum in the controversial 3.7 to 4.2 GHz frequencies at some point in 2023.
T-Mobile's mid-band is not the same thing as Verizon's C-band.
While Magenta was viewed as the big loser of the huge FCC auction where Verizon and AT&T spent a combined $68 billion on C-band licenses last year, it turns out that this may have been yet another brilliant move in a series of perfectly orchestrated steps towards nationwide wireless industry supremacy.
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By 2023, T-Mo obviously expects each and every single one of today's safety concerns to be resolved, at which point an already dominant network could become even harder to compete against.
Naturally, T-Mobile will not sit idly by while the competition battles controversy and technical limitations to close the gap to the 5G speed and coverage leader. Instead, its incredibly expansive mid-band signal will continue to reach more places and gain more features, eyeing to cover 300 million people (!!!) by 2023, up from around 210 million right now.
Is T-Mobile's 5G network safe to use in and near airports?
Absolutely. There are literally zero concerns around the low and mid-band 5G technologies currently employed by Magenta, which primarily operate on 600 MHz and 2.5 GHz frequencies respectively.
T-Mobile's 5G is available pretty much everywhere, with no restrictions and no safety concerns.
In other words, T-Mo's Ultra Capacity 5G and Verizon's 5G Ultra Wideband networks are simply built differently. That being said, it's certainly unusual to see Ray (indirectly) defend his company's rivals, echoing their key argument in favor of unrestricted C-band launches.
Namely, T-Mobile, Verizon, and AT&T are now together in pointing at "nearly 40 countries globally, in Europe, Asia and many other parts of the world" as evidence that C-band 5G technology can play nice with planes and airports without so-called buffer zones or power limitations.
Still, Neville Ray is careful to highlight the "Un-carrier's" commitment to public safety, taking the issue "very (very) seriously" and standing "ready to help" in any way, shape, or form the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and airlines to "resolve all concerns."
That's certainly a neutral and well-balanced stance, although you have to wonder how T-Mobile's reaction to this whole debacle might have differed if Magenta was the one pushing hard for a fast C-band 5G deployment.
Adrian, a mobile technology enthusiast since the Nokia 3310 era, has been a dynamic presence in the tech journalism field, contributing to Android Authority, Digital Trends, and Pocketnow before joining PhoneArena in 2018. His expertise spans across various platforms, with a particular fondness for the diversity of the Android ecosystem. Despite the challenges of balancing full-time parenthood with his work, Adrian's passion for tech trends, running, and movies keeps him energized. His commitment to mid-range smartphones has led to an eclectic collection of devices, saved from personal bankruptcy by his preference for 'adequate' over 'overpriced'.
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