T-Mobile's layer cake approach to 5G becomes a sweet treat

When T-Mobile was devising its plans to build its 5G network, it consulted with Marie-Antoinette who said, "Let us use cake." So the nation's second-largest carrier created what it calls the layer cake approach to 5G. The low-band 600MHz signals make up the foundation of the cake and are used to provide nationwide 5G. These signals travel over far distances making them perfect for the bottom layer.

The middle of the cake is comprised of the mid-band 2.5GHz airwaves acquired in the Sprint acquisition. Covering "Metro" areas of the country, the mid-band layer is very important because these signals travel farther than high-band waves and deliver faster download speeds than low-band 5G. When you talk about download speeds fast enough to download a full-length movie in seconds, you are talking about the mmWave high-band spectrum. The issue with these airwaves is that they do not travel far and have trouble penetrating structures. That is why they are being deployed in dense urban areas like big cities.

T-Mobile announced today that it has teamed up with Betty Crocker to produce a limited edition official Supercharged 5G Un-carrier Layer Cake. While T-Mobile's 5G layer cake strategy is available from the wireless provider's stores, the "Un-carrier Cake Mix" is not. T-Mobile was offering the mix free to those asking for a box but strong demand for the mix means that it is "sold out."

If you're wondering why T-Mobile is the fastest-growing major carrier in the country, look no further than promotions like this one. It also reveals that under CEO Mike Sievert, T-Mobile will be just as much fun and quirky as it was under the legendary John Legere.

Of course, promos like this don't matter if the carrier doesn't deliver to its customers. Neville Ray, President of Technology at T-Mobile, says, "We said it first and we’ll say it again … T-Mobile’s 'layer cake' approach to 5G is the ONLY way to #5GForAll. Hell, we’ve even bake a cake with Betty Crocker to celebrate it. When it comes to 5G, you’ve got to have layers — low band, mid band and high band make for a tasty cake. Unfortunately for them, AT&T and Verizon’s 5G networks don’t have the right ingredients, like clear 5G spectrum in all three bands."