Telstra trials 5G mobile phone technology that could be up to eight times faster than 4G
Telstra has begun trialling faster millimetre-wave 5G mobile phone technology, which could be up to eight times faster than 4G, in sites at Parramatta and on the Gold Coast as the company announces its 5G network is now available in more than 700 towns across the country.
The trial marks the next step in the construction of 5G networks in Australia.
Initially, 5G networks in Australia could only use lower-spectrum bands they already had licences for, meaning the much faster mm-wave 5G could not be used in Australia because it needs to use spectrum in higher bands (upwards of 26GHz).
Related: Australian public's confidence in 5G 'shaken' by misinformation campaign
The higher-end spectrum allows data to transfer at much higher rates, and with lower lag in communication to devices.
Lower-spectrum (3.6GHz currently) 5G is around two times faster than 4G, but using the higher spectrum, 5G can be significantly faster, just over a shorter distance. Ericsson, the company behind the technology in Telstra’s 5G network, reported earlier this year speeds of up to 4.3 gigabits per second in its lab test.
Ericsson said it was the equivalent of downloading one hour of 4K video in just 14 seconds.
For comparison, NBN is just starting to sell 1Gbps services, with the vast majority of Australian households on 50Mbps plans.
The massive speeds on 5G are mostly for bragging rights at the moment, but telecommunications companies say the higher speeds and lower communications lag will have benefits for business, more than consumers, for example for machine to machine communications like in agriculture, or for cloud computing.
Most people will not be able to access the higher-speed 5G until the network is constructed across the country in 2021, but Telstra made the announcement as it launched a $599 5G mobile Wi-Fi device that would be able to use 5G not only in the higher spectrum band, but also the lower-band 5G, and 4G.
The higher speeds for now will only be available at the test locations in Parramatta and on the Gold Coast.
Aside from that, no other devices currently in the market will be able to use the mm-wave 5G. The other devices Telstra has in the market that can use 5G are limited to the lower-spectrum band. Currently, they are limited to a select few Samsung, LG and Oppo mobile phones.
Related: Why are Australians smashing their TVs? And what does it have to do with 5G and coronavirus?
The company also announced more than 700 suburbs in Australia have over 50% 5G coverage, and around a quarter of the population pass through or live in a 5G area today.
Optus now has 740 5G sites in Perth, Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Brisbane and Adelaide.
Vodafone has commenced rolling out 5G in Parramatta, and has said it will go live with sites in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Canberra and Perth some time this year.
It comes as a parliamentary committee examining the technology found that misinformation campaigns around health issues claimed to be associated with 5G had shaken community trust in the technology. The federal government will spend $9m on an information campaign designed to address these concerns.
