5G causes crazy battery drain and I don't at all notice a noticeable difference in speed with it with typical cell phone usage. Not sure what I would need to do to actually notice the speed difference. Torrent a file? I have 5G disabled on my phone. Every now and then, I get a text from my cell carrier saying that my phone is 5G capable and I should enable it for better speeds.
This isn't 2019 anymore dude. 5G is not the big bad wolf and I've not heard of anyone complain about it draining battery in half a decade. Idc what sources you pull up, this is absolute nonsense.
My downloads, uploads, and connections in genral are much faster on 5G. I'm talking 200mbps-400mbps vs 10-20mbps speed difference.
On 4G every action takes longer. On 5G I can reliably stream or download FullHD or higher resolution video for offline viewing. Which is a nuisance on 4G.
5G penetrates exactly the same into buildings. It's just an updated protocol to 4G that runs on the same frequencies. The naunce is that FR1 is identical to 4G, while FR2 aka mmWave is different, but is only available on iPhones.
Ah sorry, I watched this video a while back and thought that it was only iphones that support it. Apparently the distinction was that the us is the only country that gets iphones with mmwave.
I'm going to be honest and say that I do not understand most of the technical jargon in that article or how it applies to the scenario. I don't know what to tell you because both my and others real world experience have seen battery improvements when disabling 5G. Could just be where the towers are in my area or something, but that's how it is for me and others.
When my phone is connected to a 5G signal, it is connected to "5G UC" which the forum user in the first article stated is a specific type of 5G signal which consumes more battery. I don't know if that bit about it being a specific type of signal is true, but the battery effect I have noted in practice. I don't have a Pixel phone, but I do use T-Mobile. I also often have a worse time trying to use data when my phone says "5G UC"...occasionally giving me a poor signal unless I disable it. I live in a very well populated, major metro area supposedly with good 5G coverage. I don't live out in the sticks and I don't live in an incredibly hyper dense urban center with excessive people crowding the cell towers. My phone is a flagship-level phone from 2023. So idk.
Edit: I feel like this is the 1080p vs 4k debacle all over again. I cannot for the life of me tell the difference between the two at a normal viewing distance. On a computer monitor? Sure. On a TV where you're sitting across the room and not on top of the screen? Absolutely not. Same with 4G vs 5G for me. No discernible difference in speed for "normal" usage. I'm sure if I was cloud gaming or torrenting a file I'd notice, but the average person isn't doing that.