Understanding the extent to which 5G has altered the experience of users in the three years since 5G first launched. Data and insight on 100 countries, examining the influence on both those markets that have launched 5G, and those where 5G’s influence has been felt ahead of 5G’s availability. Read the full analysis here.
When we compare Japan’s mobile experience globally we can see the impact of this later start. While Japan is above average on 5G Peak Download Speed with a score of 574.3 Mbps compared to the average of 528.4 Mbps across 30 leading 5G countries, it is slightly below the average on 5G Download Speed (160 Mbps versus 181.5 Mbps) but is further behind on 5G Upload Speed (11.2 Mbps vs 23.6 Mbps). Since the start of 2021, Japan’s mobile operators have been accelerating their 5G roll out. Read the full analysis here.
The overall speed experienced by 5G smartphones differs greatly by smartphone brand. However, across all brands we see that the overall speed for 5G devices is significantly higher compared with 4G smartphone models of the same brand. This increase highlights the importance of 5G technology to accelerate the mobile experience.
It’s notable that Samsung sees a much smaller speed uplift for its 5G smartphones than other brands, ranging from 1.4 times faster for Samsung’s 5G models over its 4G models in Italy and Germany, to 1.6 times faster in the UK. The uplift in download speed we see for 5G smartphone models over 4G smartphone models is greatest for iPhone devices.
Comprehensive analysis of the rising mobile data consumption trend over the last few years, including the impact of 5G and the pandemic. Read the full analysis here.
Latest analysis of global 5G speeds, reach, video and games experience around the world. Read the full analysis.
Samsung dominates the rankings for the top 25 fastest 5G smartphone models in the U.S., 60% of models in the list are Samsung. The new Samsung Galaxy S21 5G has the highest U.S. average download speed. Apple users see the biggest leap in speeds in 5G areas among smartphone brands — 2.3x faster. “Foldable” smartphones are competitive with conventional 5G smartphone designs for cellular speeds, despite the additional complexity of antenna design in “transformable” form factors. When there is a 5G iPad, users are set to see a speed boost: today, because 5G-capable iPhone 12 Pro users have speeds 36% faster than current cellular iPad Pro users that are limited to 4G. Read the full analysis
The share of users’ measurements connecting to Rakuten’s own radio network is now almost half — 48.3% in December — up from 39.2% in September. Plus, we continue to see users enjoying faster speeds when connected to the new Rakuten network, especially for upload speeds that are useful for sharing photos, videos and other large files.
We analyzed 15 cities across Japan, and compared the results in December with three months earlier in September to understand how quickly Rakuten is expanding the reach of its network. This is important because our users see much faster speeds as Rakuten’s reach improves.
Latest look at 5G speeds, coverage, video and games experience around the world. Read the full analysis.
Looking ahead to the unveiling of the first 5G iPhone models, I analyzed the experience of current 4G iPhone models and compared it with 5G phones from other brands to understand the potential for 5G to lift improve Apple users’ mobile experience. Read the full analysis.
There is enormous hype around Rakuten’s mobile network They are a new challenger operator in Japan that made the switch from MVNO to running their own network in April 2020. They are evangelizing the use of OpenRAN, virtualization, and a network built through smaller and/or less conventional telecom vendors. And, they are aiming to sell their network design and integration approach to other operators around the world. Here, we analyzed users’ experience soon after Rakuten’s 4G network launch to see if the execution matches the vision. Read the full analysis.
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