Operators won’t tell you that you can use the 5G network without a 5G package

According to data disclosed by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, my country has opened 718,000 5G base stations, and it is expected that 600,000 new 5G base stations will be built in 2021. With the increase of 5G base stations, 5G network coverage is also constantly improving. In addition to first-tier cities, many third- and fourth-tier cities also have their own 5G networks. Some users holding 5G mobile phones even found the 5G icon in the upper right corner of the phone. Does this mean that even users who do not have 5G packages can use the 5G network?

Let's first sort out several situations in which 5G networks may be used! Situation 1: Can 4G mobile phones use 5G networks? 4G mobile phones can upgrade 4G packages to 5G packages, but they cannot use 5G networks because they lack core hardware such as 5G baseband chips and 5G antennas; Situation 2: How should 5G mobile phones use 5G networks under normal circumstances? The 5G network needs to be turned on on the mobile phone. After all, the 5G network is not mature now and will also increase the power consumption of the mobile phone. Many mobile phone manufacturers have set the function of whether to turn on the 5G network. The 4G package is also upgraded to the 5G network normally, and the package upgrade does not require the replacement of the mobile phone SIM card; Situation 3: Using a 5G mobile phone and having searched for a 5G signal, but still using a 4G package.

We are mainly discussing the third situation. Can a 5G mobile phone use the 5G network if it has not activated the 5G package?

We used the same speed test software at the same point where we could receive 4G and 5G signals, and tested three solutions: 4G mobile phone + 4G package + 4G network, 5G mobile phone + 4G package + 5G network, and 5G mobile phone + 5G package + 5G network.

For specific test values, please refer to the figure below. We mainly look at the data of the second round of tests. It is not difficult to see from the information fed back to us that both the download speed and the upload speed are better than the first round of tests, but all are lower than the third round of tests. From this, we can conclude that even if a 5G mobile phone uses a 4G package, it can still use the 5G network (the download speed has exceeded the limit of the 4G network, and it is bound to use the 5G network), but it cannot achieve the same speed as a 5G mobile phone plus a 5G network (the current 5G network is mainly responsible for traffic transmission and does not support voice calls).

In fact, this is no longer a secret within the operator, but it has not been disclosed to consumers. What do you think is the reason why the operator has been reluctant to disclose this matter?

Since 4G packages can still use 5G networks, is it necessary to upgrade the packages to 5G networks?

You can make a flexible choice based on your personal situation, after all, everyone's needs are different. There are two thresholds for 5G packages that restrict our choices. One is the network speed issue mentioned above. Since 4G packages can also enjoy a download speed of 200 megabits per second, why do we need to force an upgrade to 5G network? One is that the entry threshold of 5G is relatively high. Taking China Mobile's 5G package as an example, the lowest rate is 128 yuan per month.

If you consider it from another perspective, if the monthly cost of your 4G package is higher than the lowest rate of the 5G package, it is still more cost-effective to apply for a 5G package. Why do you say that? Whether it is the average voice call duration or traffic charges of the 5G package, it is lower than the 4G network. You can enjoy more favorable services for the same fee.

After knowing that you can still use the 5G network without upgrading the 5G package, will you still apply for the operator's 5G package service?