Verizon's 5G network is extremely fast, but there is hardly

I spent the last 18 hours in Chicago not feasting on hot dogs or deep pizzas, but banging the tires on Verizon's 5G mobile network. Yesterday, the major US operator said triumphantly that it had lit up its 5G service in "parts of Chicago and Minneapolis" and that "for the first time, customers can access a commercial 5G network with the first system." 5G commercially available smartphone enabled. The launch took place a week earlier than planned. Verizon did not explain why it had suddenly accelerated things, but the South Korean carriers also adopted the 5G technology yesterday. It is possible that society does not want to be beaten by peers around the world.

I know you want speed tests, so to start, yes, Verizon's 5G data speeds are pretty fast compared to what your smartphone can handle right now. I am between 400 and 600 Mbps on downloads. I can also tell you that, at least in Chicago, it sounds like a premature launch and that 5G can be terribly hard to find. When you find him, you must stay put to see what he is capable of.

Let's see what you need if you want to take advantage of the 5G data transmission speed. Verizon customers must have both the mid-range Motorola Moto Z3 that I reviewed last year, as well as the 5G Moto Mod that went on sale yesterday. It costs $ 200 more and contains millimeter wave antenna arrays for optimal 5G reception. There is also a 2,000 mAh battery in the Moto Mod to prevent your phone from running out because of all these radios.

The Z3 and Moto Mod are still less than what you'll pay for the next Samsung Galaxy S10 5G every time that happens at Verizon too, but it's still a big investment for a network that, as I've learned to walk the streets here, is barely operational.

The coverage is so small that for the time being I would advise against anyone buying the 5G Moto Mod and paying Verizon $ 10 more each month to receive the 5G. Even early users would be well advised to continue to wait for the deployment to make more substantial progress in the coming weeks and months.

Verizon has stated that its 5G Ultra Wideband service is available in Chicago as follows:

In Chicago, 5G coverage is concentrated in the West Loop and South Loop areas around landmarks such as Union Station, Willis Tower, the Art Institute of Chicago, Millennium Park and Chicago theater. Customers also benefit from the 5G Ultra Wideband service in the Verizon store on The Magnificent Mile and throughout the Gold Coast, Old City and River North.

My tests last night are in direct conflict with this tourist "map" where you can get 5G. I visited the Chicago Theater and the Chicago Art Institute, and there was no 5G signal to be found at these two locations. The same goes for Millennium Park. At Bean, I became a regular old LTE.

I've traveled a lot of ground around the loop and, indeed, the 5G UWB Network Indicator sometimes appears instead of Verizon's well-known LTE logo. But, as can be seen below, it often tipped back and forth, seemingly unable to comfortably hang on to a 5G connection. This never caused data interruptions or problems with applications, but was common in areas where Verizon had 5G access.

Also, can we take a moment to discuss the huge size of this 5G status bar icon? Look up to where the vibration icon is pushed! I know we're all excited about this 5G system, but you can certainly reduce it on future phones, Verizon / Moto.

When you find 5G, it's extremely fast.

In areas where the 5G signal is reliable, the speed of data transmission is much higher than that typically offered by Verizon's LTE network. The difference between 4G LTE and 5G is very clear. With the 5G Moto Mod connected to the Z3, the average is 400 to 600 Mbps, which is about 10 times faster than my iPhone XS Max – right next to the test phone – removed from the Verizon network. It's faster than many home broadband connections. Theoretically, just download a movie from Netflix or Amazon Prime Video in seconds instead of minutes. The 5G Moto Mod can be used as an access point via a USB cable if you want to share these amazing download rates with your laptop.

However, download rates have been slower than what I expected from 5G. Some Motorola employees told me that they had found a speed close to 60 Mbps in their own tests, which is better, but that still does not seem to be the next generation. The ping for each test varied between 20 and 30 milliseconds, according to Ookla Speedtest. Verizon ideally wants to reduce this figure to a figure for 5G use cases, such as cloud games and virtual reality, in which it is essential to eliminate the latency.

But let me go back to the blanket. It's frustrating at random in Chicago. It is centered on the city's attractions and densely populated areas, but it's not even uniform. 5G is there for one block and left the next. You will start the 5G lottery at a street corner, then several without the same luck. What kind of treasure hunt is this?

The two best places for the service I found are a street just off Motorola's offices (unsurprisingly) and at the famous Union Station. One of Verizon's 5G nodes was near both sites. This is how the carrier sends millimeter radio waves (mmW) that allow breathtaking download speeds.

The proximity really counts here. If you can see one of these nodes, you are probably in the 5G range. But if you get away from it enough, you will fall back into LTE. The penetration of buildings is also a challenge for millimeter waves. The 5G signal was able to pbad to the ground floor of the Motorola office building if I were near the door or window, but once inside, it was not clear. There was nothing left. Verizon's competitors are aware of this weakness.

Why now?

I'm sure Verizon's 5G network will grow significantly in the coverage area over the next few months. The company has announced plans to launch mobile 5G in 30 cities this year. The pressure will come once AT & T, T-Mobile and Sprint have joined the operation, which will only push Verizon to speed things up. But this initial launch in Chicago – I can not speak to Minneapolis – seems hasty. Until there are more nodes installed, whoever buys the 5G Moto Mod will feel fooled when he realizes how few there are 5G areas in this city. Verizon must act quickly to make things feel a little more consistent. The first day is the opposite.

LTE started small and dispersed in a very similar way to this one. I remember the slow deployment of 4G on national coverage, and it looks like we're back in the running. We are used to being covered with fast data in 2019, and no one likes to wait. It is unreasonable to expect 5G to appear and replace LTE in any major city, but it would be good to have at least one neighborhood or radius of several blocks where you can benefit. This is not yet at this level.

So I'm curious to know why Verizon felt compelled to leave now rather than April 11, as originally planned. Would things have been easier if the carrier had waited a week? Would I actually have 5G reception in some places that Verizon had said I was supposed to be there? Who knows.

At the moment, I do not think anyone should add to their monthly bill to take Verizon's first steps in 5G. Download speeds are a leap forward, and the Motorola Moto Mod respects the promises of its name. (This will even improve your Moto Z3's LTE speeds outside 5G coverage areas), but until you can walk a few blocks and keep a 5G signal, what is it for?

Chris Welch / The Verge Photography