I spent thousands of dollars on a 5G phone, but why is the Internet speed still so slow? The answer is out

I believe many people have encountered this problem, so what is going on?

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What is the core network?

Using a 5G mobile phone and a 5G package, but the 5G network is not as fast as expected? This phenomenon is mainly caused by the special networking method of 5G.

Currently, there are two 5G networking modes, namely SA (standalone networking) and NSA (non-standalone networking).

The main differences between the two are:

NSA requires the use of 4G core network, 4G base stations and 5G base stations; SA uses 5G core network and 5G base stations.

A concept called core network is mentioned here. First of all, we should know that our mobile communication system consists of three parts: access network, bearer network and core network.

To explain it simply using the example of buying something on Taobao:

——The access network is the “express delivery station” responsible for collecting data;

——The bearer network is the “delivery truck” responsible for delivering data;

——The core network is the "express delivery management platform", which is responsible for managing this data, sorting the data, and then telling it where to go.

What is the difference between SA and NSA?

Now that we understand what the core network is, we can have a deeper understanding of the two 5G networking methods.

The first is NSA (non-standalone networking). As mentioned earlier, it uses the previous 4G core network instead of 5G’s own. Therefore, in this way, if we want to access 5G, we must first access 4G and complete the connection with the 4G core network.

That is to say, we have to first access a 4G base station and then use it to help us access 5G. We call such a 4G base station an anchor station.

So after accessing 5G through a 4G anchor station, can we disconnect from the 4G anchor station? Unfortunately, no.

Because NSA's core network is 4G, it is responsible for managing data, which means that management information must be transmitted through 4G anchor stations.

To sum up, under NSA non-independent networking, mobile phones need to connect to 4G and 5G at the same time, so the speed will be subject to some restrictions from 4G.

SA independent networking is very simple. It uses 5G base stations and 5G core network, directly accesses 5G, and can unleash the full power of 5G.

Obviously, this solution is more convenient and faster. So why not use this networking method instead of a combination of the two?

The reason is cost constraints. SA independent networking requires the construction of a new 5G core network, which will inevitably incur huge expenses, and the construction of a new core network also takes time.

Therefore, it is an ideal solution to first adopt non-independent networking and then transition to independent networking.

3 situations where 5G network speed is not fast enough

Now we can answer the question raised at the beginning, why is it showing 5G but the speed is still not fast enough?

There are three cases:

The first is to connect to the anchor station.

The anchor station is a 4G base station. Although the phone displays the 5G logo, it actually uses the 4G channel, so the experience is basically the same as 4G.

The second is NSA networking.

When a mobile phone is connected to an anchor station and a 5G base station at the same time, the speed will be significantly improved, and ideally it can reach 800Mbps.

The third is SA networking.

The mobile phone is directly connected to the 5G base station, and the speed is no longer limited by 4G and can reach 1200Mbps.

So how do you detect which 5G you are connected to?

It’s actually very simple.

method:

Find [About Phone] in the [Settings] interface of your phone, enter it and click on the network status of your 5G phone SIM card from [Status Information];

You can see there is a [Mobile Network Type] item;

If LTE is displayed, it must be a 5G anchor point, and all 4G channels are used;

If it is LTE and NR, it is NSA networking;

If it is NR, then congratulations, this is SA networking and you can experience the true speed of 5G.