Best family phone plans of 2026

“5G” is an umbrella term that includes current fifth-generation cellular wireless networking technologies. All major carriers and phones support 5G connections, which can provide faster data speeds than older technologies like 4G LTE or 3G.

Basically there Three types of 5G: Millimeter wave (mmWave), which can be fast but has limited range; Low range 5G, which has slower speeds but operates at a wider range; and Middle rangewhich is a balance between the two and is faster than low band but also covers a larger range than millimeter wave. The middle range is also included C rangea block of spectrum that was auctioned off by the Federal Communications Commission in 2021.

Your phone’s 5G connection depends on the type covering the area you’re in, as well as other factors, such as population density and infrastructure. For example, mmWave is very fast, but its signals can be thwarted by buildings — or glass, or foliage — or whether you’re inside a building.

When your device is connected to a 5G network, it can appear as 5G, 5G Plus, 5G UW, or others, depending on the carrier. Here’s a list of the icons you see at the top of your phone for the main services:

AT&T: 5G (which is not actually 5G, but a malicious marketing name for 4G LTE), 5G (low range), 5G Plus (mmWave, mid-band)

Verizon: 5G (low band, also called “Nationwide 5G”), 5G UW/5G UWB (Mid-band and mmWave, also called “5G Ultra Wideband”)

T-Mobile: 5G (low range), 5G UC (Mid-band and mmWave, also called “ultra-band 5G”)

There is also low capacity 5G (5G RedCap), which is a lower power and smaller capacity branch of 5G used by devices such as smartwatches and mobile health devices; For example, the Apple Watch Ultra 3 connects via 5G RedCap.

Just around the corner is 5G Advanced, which promises much faster speeds due to carrier aggregation, or combining multiple spectrums.