About one in 3 Americans believe they have 5G

It’s not simply Uncle Larry who’s puzzled. Potentially countless individuals do not appear to comprehend whether their smart device can working on 5G cordless innovation, or whether they’re even surfing with it now or not.

Decluttr, a phone repair service, surveyed 2,000 United States smart device owners in late May and discovered that about a 3rd of participants thought they had a gadget efficient in 5G cordless connections. Of them, 40% were Apple iPhone owners (Apple hasn’t yet launched a 5G iPhone), and 31% owned a Samsung gadget (Samsung’s Galaxy S10 5G phone just went on sale a couple months earlier, for $1,300). Moreover, 62% of those who believed they had a 5G-capable gadget state they have actually discovered enhanced mobile service. 

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The data is the latest sign of confusion over the next-generation wireless technology, which has only become available in some large cities like New York, Chicago, London, Sydney and Seoul. CNET’s own tests in 13 cities found the technology is living up to some of its hype, with speeds better than many people’s wired home internet connections. But coverage is spotty and inconsistent for now.

“Blazing speeds, a responsive network, and extensive coverage make up 5G’s Holy Grail,” wrote CNET’s Jessica Dolcourt. “And while carriers want to act fast to build out their networks, the customer should move slower. You may not have much of a choice if 5G isn’t live in your area.”

And for those who don’t, there appears to be a bit of confusion. Some of that is sown by the carriers themselves. AT&T, for example, has begun marketing “5G E” service, a rebranding and upgrade of its existing 4G LTE service, promising faster speeds. Some tests found AT&T’s 5G E was slower than competing 4G service. And in April, AT&T settled a false advertising suit with its competitor Sprint, which accused AT&T of “numerous deceptive tactics to mislead consumers” about 5G.

All that confusion appears to have taken a toll on the consumers that Decluttr surveyed, who may be overestimating the technology in their devices. Among those the firm surveyed, 46% of all customers on AT&T, 40% of those on T-Mobile and 27% of people on Verizon also believed they had a “5G capable” device.

“Whilst 5G may be the word on everyone’s lips, many Americans don’t truly understand this upgrade to the mobile network,” Decluttr said in a statement.

Representatives for Apple, Samsung and the various US carriers didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.