Today, Samsung Malaysia invited us to Putrajaya to test out the 5G network performance with the Galaxy S21 Ultra. If we are being honest, we weren't expecting anything too mindblowing since the 5G network is still at its infant stage. Nevertheless, we did a couple of tests to see the speed performance so here's what you need to know.
As per standard, the app to go to is using the Speedtest by Ookla. We and the media were given a Galaxy S21 Ultra unit to speed test the 5G network in Dataran Putra, Putrajaya. Upon reaching there, the first thing we tested is the mobile internet speed between 5G and 4G. Of course, this shouldn't come as a surprise as 5G is obviously way faster than the latter but we noticed something interesting.
(L-R) Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra with YES FT5G, Apple iPhone 12 Pro with Digi, and realme 3 with Maxis
Highest speed test we got
(DISCLAIMER - We are aware that the label there says Yes 4G but we assure you that we have chosen the Yes 5G network for testing)
At some spots, we got pretty good connection speeds
Then this happened
...and this
Since all of us were given the Galaxy S21 Ultra, we decided to compare the speed test with each other. For some reason, the speed test varies from 200+ Mbps to 900+ Mbps and it doesn't matter which spot we were in. Some were under the trees, some went to the roundabout in Dataran Putra and even stood on the benches just to see how the speed tests turn out. In the end, we can only conclude that it's not consistent, including the upload speed tests.
On the other hand, I also tested out the download speed between my iPhone 12 Pro (using Digi) and the Galaxy S21 Ultra (YES FT5G). I used both phones to download the Asphalt 9 game app because it's a huge file (2.55GB). Naturally, I thought the Galaxy S21 Ultra would finish downloading it first but to my surprise, my Digi line was done while the former was a quarter away from being complete. To be fair, my other media buddy tried the same thing and got the opposite result using his Celcom line.
The Digi line managed to complete the download first
Meanwhile, watching a 4K YouTube video was smooth and you didn't need to wait long if you skipped to other parts of the video
So what can we learn from this? As aforementioned, we weren't expecting anything groundbreaking. Of course, a 5G network will always be faster than its predecessor but at the moment, the speed tests are quite wonky and inconsistent. This is to be expected since the 5G network infrastructure is still in development.
If you already have 5G connectivity, you will still probably experience 4G when making a phone call or sending a message. It will take years for 5G connectivity to mature and stay consistent, so it's hard to say when we will finally get a full 5G experience. Despite all this, we remain optimistic about the potential of what 5G could bring to the table.
Have you experienced 5G yet? If so, let us know in the comments below about your experience. Also, continue to stay safe and stay tuned for more tech reviews only at TechNave.com.
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