5G support for your phone

[wn78]

Is there any way to check if my US phone will work with 5G in Thailand (without currently being in Thailand).  It seems just having a 5G phone is no guarantee because it depends on particular frequencies that each carrier supports.

 

Either True/AIS/Dtac have a list of 5G phones they support, or do they list their 5G frequencies that I can check against my phone specs....?

[Photoguy21]

When you go to settings under WiFi is there any networks listed that are 5G? If so then it is very likely that you phone is 5G compatible. You may not have the passwords for the 5G Networks in the list but they will not show if you do not have 5G capability

[OneMoreFarang]

6 minutes ago, Photoguy21 said:

When you go to settings under WiFi is there any networks listed that are 5G? If so then it is very likely that you phone is 5G compatible. You may not have the passwords for the 5G Networks in the list but they will not show if you do not have 5G capability

There is 5G and there is 5G. Not same, different!

 

5G mobile network and 5G Wi-Fi: What's the difference? - Dignited

 

[Photoguy21]

1 minute ago, OneMoreFarang said:

There is 5G and there is 5G. Not same, different!

 

5G mobile network and 5G Wi-Fi: What's the difference? - Dignited

 

There is a difference in network and WiFi but it is very much in the technical detail. The poster wants to know if his phone can receive 5G. I assume you deal with the Mobile Radio networks in your line of work as you are quoting links, is that correct?

[OneMoreFarang]

3 minutes ago, Photoguy21 said:

There is a difference in network and WiFi but it is very much in the technical detail. The poster wants to know if his phone can receive 5G. I assume you deal with the Mobile Radio networks in your line of work as you are quoting links, is that correct?

The poster does not specify if he has 5G mobile network in mind or 5G WiFi. This is why I pointed out that 5G <> 5G.

[Bruno123]

1 hour ago, wn78 said:

Is there any way to check if my US phone will work with 5G in Thailand (without currently being in Thailand).  It seems just having a 5G phone is no guarantee because it depends on particular frequencies that each carrier supports.

 

Either True/AIS/Dtac have a list of 5G phones they support, or do they list their 5G frequencies that I can check against my phone specs....?

Did it not occur to you to post the exact model of phone in the first place?

[sqwakvfr]

1 hour ago, Bruno123 said:

Did it not occur to you to post the exact model of phone in the first place?

The exact same model could have some technical differences.  I have an unlocked Samsung A325G.  I bought the phone in Thailand.  When I was in the US the phone was not compatible with ATT even though ATT offers a Samsung A325G at their stores.  Apparently the difference was something to do with frequency range?(What do I know about that).  But the Thai version of the A32 5G worked fine on the T-Mobile network.  Some carriers have an IMEI check on their website.  I should have done that before wasting time with ATT.  

[Bruno123]

1 hour ago, sqwakvfr said:

The exact same model could have some technical differences.  I have an unlocked Samsung A325G.  I bought the phone in Thailand.  When I was in the US the phone was not compatible with ATT even though ATT offers a Samsung A325G at their stores.  Apparently the difference was something to do with frequency range?(What do I know about that).  But the Thai version of the A32 5G worked fine on the T-Mobile network.  Some carriers have an IMEI check on their website.  I should have done that before wasting time with ATT.  

Then it isn't the exact same model then is it?

Either way, I will understand once the model number has been revealed. Ridiculous that they left out such an important detail.

[KhunBENQ]

This Google find looks somewhat plausible.

https://halberdbastion.com/intelligence/countries-nations/thailand

 

Of course I can not garantuee for correctness but e.g. it is a fact that much of 5G is done over 700 MHz. DTAC does heavy advertising with 5G/700 Mhz.

(and maybe unsual for other countries?)

 

5G? I recently bought me a new 4G mobile (ignoring the 5G version).

5G coverage is still very limited outside the capital centers. Most traffic is 4G which will exist for maybe another decade. What practical advantage will 5G on a mobile/handheld device have?

5G has not been developed for mobile phone feature improvements. It's much more.

 

5G in a SIM router as substitute for a home internet connection (where fiber is not available)? Yes, might be useful.

5G in a mobile "on the road"? What for?

 

Edited May 31, 2022 by KhunBENQ

[wn78]

5 hours ago, OneMoreFarang said:

There is 5G and there is 5G. Not same, different!

 

5G mobile network and 5G Wi-Fi: What's the difference? - Dignited

 

 

5 hours ago, Photoguy21 said:

There is a difference in network and WiFi but it is very much in the technical detail. The poster wants to know if his phone can receive 5G. I assume you deal with the Mobile Radio networks in your line of work as you are quoting links, is that correct?

 

5 hours ago, OneMoreFarang said:

The poster does not specify if he has 5G mobile network in mind or 5G WiFi. This is why I pointed out that 5G <> 5G.

I'm talking about 5G mobile speeds.  Sorry I wasn't even thinking about 5G WiFi, that would be a totally different topic.  

[wn78]

5 hours ago, Bruno123 said:

Did it not occur to you to post the exact model of phone in the first place?

 

3 hours ago, Bruno123 said:

Then it isn't the exact same model then is it?

Either way, I will understand once the model number has been revealed. Ridiculous that they left out such an important detail.

I am shopping for a new 5G phone.  Pixel phones are on my list, so are a couple of Samsungs.  No point in posting the shopping list right now, because I may end up getting a different model in the end. I need a way to check if a specific 5G phone will work in Thailand or not. 

[wn78]

2 hours ago, KhunBENQ said:

5G in a SIM router as substitute for a home internet connection (where fiber is not available)? Yes, might be useful.

5G in a mobile "on the road"? What for?

You are making a good point.  Do you know if 5G mobile speeds are available over the phone WiFI hotspot (the Wifi itself does not have to be 5G)?  And not so much the speeds, but the improved latency provided by 5G mobile.  Or does the mobile connection switches back to 4G once you turn on phone's hotspot?

[Bruno123]

1 hour ago, wn78 said:

 

I am shopping for a new 5G phone.  Pixel phones are on my list, so are a couple of Samsungs.  No point in posting the shopping list right now, because I may end up getting a different model in the end. I need a way to check if a specific 5G phone will work in Thailand or not. 

Understood.

KhunBENQ has already provided an appropriate source for you.

[Photoguy21]

15 hours ago, OneMoreFarang said:

The poster does not specify if he has 5G mobile network in mind or 5G WiFi. This is why I pointed out that 5G <> 5G.

He asks about his phone being capable of connecting to 5G and that is what I answered

[Photoguy21]

10 hours ago, wn78 said:

 

 

I'm talking about 5G mobile speeds.  Sorry I wasn't even thinking about 5G WiFi, that would be a totally different topic.  

If your phone has 5G capability the network will take care of it, dont worry about that. The network needs to pass data between your phone and the local base station. It will do this automatically and will include authentication with the base station. If your phone is 5G compatible it will check and move on to the next stage of the verification process. This will take around 1 second or less so you wont notice it.

[wn78]

9 minutes ago, Photoguy21 said:

If your phone has 5G capability the network will take care of it, dont worry about that. The network needs to pass data between your phone and the local base station. It will do this automatically and will include authentication with the base station. If your phone is 5G compatible it will check and move on to the next stage of the verification process. This will take around 1 second or less so you wont notice it.

I'm not an expert, but I know if your 4G phone does not support 4G bands for the specific carrier or country, it will not work in that location.  Logically the same should be true for 5G.  It's the reason iPhone for example makes different models for US, EU, Japan, etc. 

 

[Photoguy21]

Just now, wn78 said:

I'm not an expert, but I know if your 4G phone does not support 4G bands for the specific carrier or country, it will not work in that location.  Logically the same should be true for 5G.  It's the reason iPhone for example makes different models for US, EU, Japan, etc. 

 

THe 5G spectrum is allocated differently for different countries based on usage. The USA is pretty much a stand alone system as its standards for transmission are different to most of the rest of the world. The only thing the user can do is see if 5G is supported on the phone and if so give it a try. There should be no problem as the Base Station when they connect internationally will make the necessary conversion.

[sometimewoodworker]

To add to the fun 5G will switch off when you get too close to airports in some areas as the ILS ground distance radar has problems with the 5G frequencies interference, this is true for the USA  frequencies. It maybe that it’s true in other locations.

[wn78]

Well it looks like 5G is not to be for me - at the Dtac and AIS shops I was told 5G is not available on prepaid accounts, only on post-paid, which is something I cannot have being here as a tourist since it requires local employment information....(not that I would want post-paid in the first place)...haven't checked with True, but would expect the same answer.  Can anyone confirm that above is indeed accurate?

[Bruno123]

3 minutes ago, wn78 said:

Well it looks like 5G is not to be for me - at the Dtac and AIS shops I was told 5G is not available on prepaid accounts, only on post-paid, which is something I cannot have being here as a tourist since it requires local employment information....(not that I would want post-paid in the first place)...haven't checked with True, but would expect the same answer.  Can anyone confirm that above is indeed accurate?

Of course it is nonsense.....

 

https://www.ais.th/package/en/package_net_5g.html

[wn78]

On 7/4/2022 at 7:30 AM, Bruno123 said:

Of course it is nonsense.....

 

https://www.ais.th/package/en/package_net_5g.html

Yes, they are listed as 5G on-top packages.  But when you purchase a package, you get LTE in the status bar, not 5G.  It looks they downgrade you to the LTE speed on prepaid.

[Bruno123]

14 hours ago, wn78 said:

Yes, they are listed as 5G on-top packages.  But when you purchase a package, you get LTE in the status bar, not 5G.  It looks they downgrade you to the LTE speed on prepaid.

No.

https://www.ais.th/5g/join-us/prepaid/en/index.html  Did you start with one of those?

What phone do you have?

 

[phetphet]

You should be  able to look up your phone model's specs on the internet, including supported wavelengths. You may need to search by your phone's particular serial number.

 

E.g. iPhones.   https://www.apple.com/iphone/cellular/

 

Same for Thailand's main phone providers such as this example:

https://www.ais.th/bestnetwork/en/?intcid=getpage-th-header_menu-consumer_menu-network_submenu1-4G_submenu2

 

[wn78]

14 hours ago, Bruno123 said:

No.

https://www.ais.th/5g/join-us/prepaid/en/index.html  Did you start with one of those?

What phone do you have?

 

Yes I see your point.  Yes the prepaid SIM card package specifically says 5G supported. The phone is Pixel 5 and it supports all 5G frequencies local in TH.  I purchase packages from within the AIS mobile app, and the package does say 5G.  So I have no idea why I was getting LTE only.  Maybe I was not in the right area at the time.  Next time I will bring the phone back to the store and let them figure it out once and for all.