[testis321]

5G works perfectly fine on same long distances as 2G/3G/4G did.

But it adds a dedicated frequency range for emergency services, so when shit hits the fan, and everybody is calling everybody, the emergency workers can still communicate.

Compared to TETRA, pretty much everything is an upgrade.

[Dylan16807]

> But it adds a dedicated frequency range for emergency services, so when shit hits the fan, and everybody is calling everybody, the emergency workers can still communicate.

Cool. Now if only Verizon's commercials were about that, and not claiming that the short-distance part of the network is going to revolutionize emergency services on an everyday basis.

But the fast part is what they want to advertise, so who cares about accuracy.

[blaser-waffle]

The average end user, or even a technical user paying half-assed attention, is not going to pick up on, or care, about those nuances.

We're nerds on a tech nerd forum, so we care. But HN isn't a good reflection of society, or even STEM.

[Dylan16807]

Frequencies are a nuance. The claim that the new network is making ambulances more effective is not a nuance, it's a lie.

[simonblack]

so when shit hits the fan ....

... the infrastructure that mobile phones and the internet depend on, will be non-operational.

It's 'wonderful' having a laptop or mobile phone when those things have nothing to connect to.

Spend a bit of time in places where your phone says 'no coverage' and you'll understand just what a great paper-weight it can be. <grin>

[testis321]

Nah, usually it works, just the calls don't get through.

Even after the Boston bombing, the people there couldnt get/take calls, because the network was flooded with other people calling.

Mobile networks survive most of the "shits hitting the fans", but usually the sheer amount of calls to/from that area makes them useless for emergency communication (unless you get a dedicated channel... or have "QoS" set up very very well)

[Dylan16807]

So it becomes merely a PDA taped to an iPod. That's still pretty good.

[throw0101a]

> Compared to TETRA, pretty much everything is an upgrade.

You are comparing two different things here AFAICT.

5G is a cell phone standard, and the dedicated frequency range you are referring to is used by something like the (LTE-based) FirstNet.

TETRA is a non-phone based protocol, and it is more comparable to the Public 25 radio system.

[testis321]

Tetra is the "mobile phone" that our emergency services (well, police and firefighters atleast, not sure about ambulances) use. It offers "normal" calls and messages, ut it also offers push-to-talk, and group talks (needed for teamwork).

5G is set to replace tetra, with dedicated frequencies for emergency services, and those features implemented - so this will become the "mobile phone", using dedicated frequencies on current basestations, while the data in the backend will be transfered via 5G standards (with additional moficiations for PTT and group talk).

So yes, the technology behind is different, but the usecase will be the same.

[wl]

Dedicated frequencies for emergency services is not something new that 5G brings to the table. See FirstNet for an example of LTE running on dedicated public safety frequencies.