Question How does a Windows desktop connect to Internet using 5G (5th generation, not 5GHz wifi)?

[zzzhhh]

How does a Windows desktop connect to Internet using 5G?

I have googled "5G desktop USB connector" or "5G desktop USB dongle" but with no luck.

Here 5G means the 5th generation, not 5GHz.

Please give me a link to purchase if there is such a device. Thanks.

 

[dwd999]

How does a Windows desktop connect to Internet using 5G?

I have googled "5G desktop USB connector" or "5G desktop USB dongle" but with no luck.

Here 5G means the 5th generation, not 5GHz.

Please give me a link to purchase if there is such a device. Thanks.

Fifth generation is defined as 802.11ac wifi:

https://www.pcworld.com/article/469...fi_is_coming_are_you_ready_for_802_11ac_.html

Is that what you're referring to? Or are you referring to internet via 5G wireless phone technology transmitted from cell towers? If you want 5G cell internet you would have to contact a service provider and they would supply you with the equipment.

https://www.allconnect.com/internet/5g

The portable devices used to connect to 5G cell networks are called Mobile Hotspots and are usually specific to the wireless company:

https://www.pcmag.com/picks/the-best-mobile-hotspots

 

[bill001g]

It depends on the country you are in to what is being offered. You would need to check with the mobile broadband (ie cellphone) provider to see what device work on their system You likely will get hits if you use the words 5g and modem.

Now it would have been nice if the only confusing about 5G was if it is was wifi. The very first systems they called 5G were extremely fast, talking gigabit speeds. They were designed to compete with wired cable or fiber installs. The huge downside was they use a very high radio frequeciy that did not go through walls so you needed to put outdoor units. The coverage distance was also not real good. These were installed in some major cities so if you happen to live close to one you can get it.

What then happened is a couple cell phone vendors started to call a technology 5G that a lot of other vendors were calling LTE advanced or LTE advanced pro. So now you really have no way to really know what technology they are calling 5G. This is very different than the system that was first implemented for home type use. This new one is a cell phone tech used for mobile use rather than fixed.

Then again this is exactly what happened when 4G came out. A bunch of vendors called some of the higher end 3G systems 4G and it took a long time before consumer figured out 4G and 4G-LTE where very different things.

Your first step though is to try to find a vendor that offers signal where you live and then you can try to find a device that works on their system. Most times you can buy them directly from the company but you might get them cheaper elsewhere.

 

[zzzhhh]

I'm in USA (isn't it assumed by default here?), in a city not very big but the capital of the state. I'm referring to "internet via 5G wireless phone technology transmitted from cell towers". I don't know which service provider has this service in the first place. AT&T? I have been on a call for a hour for a tech support of AT&T, but haven't got through yet.

Update: I got connected to a human tech support of AT&T at last after waiting for more than an hour. Then I took great pains to explain to her I'm not talking about hotspot, because hotspot is wifi, but about 5G. What I want is a USB device that can receive 5G signal directly just like a mobile phone (5G mobile phone doesn't need hotspot to do wireless communication), and subsequently transfer data with PC via USB port. Then she asked me to continue to wait to transfer to AT&T Mobile tech support. After waiting for nearly two hours, I was told: "The call center is closed. Please choose your option: 1: pay by phone, 2: blah blah blah ..."

 

[JohnMGotts]

As far as I know, ATT still doesn’t offer 5G for home. T-Mobile and Verizon do. They’ve been making notebooks/pc’s for a few years now that support 5G mobile without hotspots. I guess the real issue is, would it be faster than the wireless network you might have and, do you have 5G mobile available where you live.

 

[zzzhhh]

As far as I know, ATT still doesn’t offer 5G for home. T-Mobile and Verizon do. They’ve been making notebooks/pc’s for a few years now that support 5G mobile without hotspots. I guess the real issue is, would it be faster than the wireless network you might have and, do you have 5G mobile available where you live.

Thanks for the reply. So the service I want is called "5G for home", right? Is the device a USB dongle that receives 5G signal directly and transmits the data to PC? Can you please share with me a link to a 5G dongle product in Amazon or eBay? I guess this 5G dongle is bigger than a wifi dongle, but since it does not need UI, should be smaller than a mobile phone.

I have AT&T 5G signal, but I don't know if T-Mobile 5G signal is available. Verizon doesn't provide any 5G service in my city. I'll contact T-Mobile tech support tomorrow. Hope they know what I'm talking about and have the 5G for home service at the property. It seems that Xfinity also provides wifi hotspot (xfinitywifi) in my city but it simply is not working for me (I need a stable and high bandwidth to support Zoom meeting on PC. I need to share website, documents and graphical results with other participants, not just voice and a face).

 

[dwd999]

Thanks for the reply. So the service I want is called "5G for home", right? Is the device a USB dongle that receives 5G signal directly and transmits the data to PC? Can you please share with me a link to a 5G dongle product in Amazon or eBay? I guess this 5G dongle is bigger than a wifi dongle, but since it does not need UI, should be smaller than a mobile phone.

I have AT&T 5G signal, but I don't know if T-Mobile 5G signal is available. Verizon doesn't provide any 5G service in my city. I'll contact T-Mobile tech support tomorrow. Hope they know what I'm talking about and have the 5G for home service at the property. It seems that Xfinity also provides wifi hotspot (xfinitywifi) in my city but it simply is not working for me (I need a stable and high bandwidth to support Zoom meeting on PC. I need to share website, documents and graphical results with other participants, not just voice and a face).

As I indicated above, 5G doesn't have the same type of usb dongle that wifi has. They are called Mobile Hotspots and some examples that you could buy are discussed in the article

https://www.pcmag.com/picks/the-best-mobile-hotspots

In addition if you click on the reference in my above message and scroll down the page you will see coverage maps for all of the major services. As for AT&T your best reference would be their Business page

Wireless Broadband - Get Unlimited Data | AT&T Small Business

Shop AT&T Wireless Broadband to get unlimited data wherever business takes you. Enjoy remote internet, easy self-install and an always-on failover connection.

www.att.com

which discusses their wireless broadband plans. However most of these are currently 4G LTE since their 5G service isn't available yet. There's a number you can call to get device on Mobile Hotspots for AT&T service:

855.773.7578

 

[bill001g]

First you should not really look at these options if you have any form of fiber or cable tv type of connection available. I think all the mobile broadband plans have some kind of data limits in the USA and are in most cases much slower than a wired connection.

So lately there have been a lot more names and I am not sure what exactly they call them. ATT and verizon tend to the be the most honest but then they are the ones that put out the first actual 5G networks almost 8 years ago. Tmobiles network is mostly old sprint bandwidth repurposed.

What att calls them now is 5G, 5G-UG, 5G+. The first one is mostly just a rename of some 4G stuff. The second is uses a more dense data encoding and is closer to what is 5G. The last is what is many times called millimeter 5G because it run on high frequencies like 28G.

All the vendors now more or less playing this game. The vast majority of the network is the renamed type of 5G. At least if you read the fine print they admit there is more than 1 kind of 5g.

The one you want for home use is 5G+. This is the one you see them testing and getting rates over 1gbit. It can get 5gbit in lab situations. It is not available in many areas and mostly it is ATT and verizon that offer it. I have been told tmobile has some of this also but most of tmoble is the mid or lower speed stuff. What you should expect is maybe 100-150mbps on the first if you are lucky. The second is maybe 350-500mbps again if you are lucky. The real 5G+ is only available in very large cities and not even in the whole city. It is expensive for them to run so they only install it in areas with huge numbers of people. Down town new york city is the place I have seen most the actual user tests that get over 1gbit.

 

[JohnMGotts]

Thanks for the reply. So the service I want is called "5G for home", right? Is the device a USB dongle that receives 5G signal directly and transmits the data to PC? Can you please share with me a link to a 5G dongle product in Amazon or eBay? I guess this 5G dongle is bigger than a wifi dongle, but since it does not need UI, should be smaller than a mobile phone.

I have AT&T 5G signal, but I don't know if T-Mobile 5G signal is available. Verizon doesn't provide any 5G service in my city. I'll contact T-Mobile tech support tomorrow. Hope they know what I'm talking about and have the 5G for home service at the property. It seems that Xfinity also provides wifi hotspot (xfinitywifi) in my city but it simply is not working for me (I need a stable and high bandwidth to support Zoom meeting on PC. I need to share website, documents and graphical results with other participants, not just voice and a face).

Sorry, Unless you opt for hotspot,,,not. Why not just get cable internet w/wifi router? You can buy a service provider authorized one so you only pay for access charges. https://www.t-mobile.com/home-inter...70989d1a4d44164ee8e7ff85379e2e16&gclsrc=3p.ds

 

[gggplaya]

My father has Tmobile 5G home internet. They just give you a wifi router to install at your home. The router automatically connects to 5G and offers wifi to connect your PC to the router. But the router also has 4 ethernet connections to connect to your desktop as well if you don't want to use wifi.

But if you live in a Rural area without cable, fiber or good cellular coverage. Then STARLINK is your only answer, but there's a long wait list because they can only make 5000 units per week. If you preorder today, you might not get it until 2024. https://www.starlink.com/

 

[zzzhhh]

Sorry, Unless you opt for hotspot,,,not. Why not just get cable internet w/wifi router? You can buy a service provider authorized one so you only pay for access charges. https://www.t-mobile.com/home-inter...70989d1a4d44164ee8e7ff85379e2e16&gclsrc=3p.ds

because I have difficulty getting a cable internet from xfinity. Thousands of dollars of installation fee and possibly annoying my neighbors due to the construction are hurdles of ordering a cable internet.

I really don't understand why no people produce 5G dongle product. That's simply a wireless module for receiving/sending 5G signals plus a USB module for interfacing PC in a mobile phone everyone has at hand nowadays. Is it that hard to make?

 

[gggplaya]

because I have difficulty getting a cable internet from xfinity. Thousands of dollars of installation fee and possibly annoying my neighbors due to the construction are hurdles of ordering a cable internet.

I really don't understand why no people produce 5G dongle product. That's simply a wireless module for receiving/sending 5G signals plus a USB module for interfacing PC in a mobile phone everyone has at hand nowadays. Is it that hard to make?

I wouldn't worry about offending your neighbors. They'll use either a DitchWitch or a hole boring machine used in fiber installs to run the cable from the street to you house. It's probably only a day of work, done during normal business hours. If your neighbors have regular 9-5 jobs, they won't even be home to care.

They used to have dongles for 3G and even 4G, but as wifi became standard for so many devices like tablets, cameras and people could use their phones for hotspots. The demand for PC based cellular dropped. There's just no demand for it anymore.

For home internet, just get T-Mobile 5G if it's in your area. The router comes with the plan for free. Use the 5G router via an ethernet cable, and turn off the wifi on the router if you want that kind of security. You can disable wifi following these instructions: https://community.t-mobile.com/tv-home-internet-7/turn-off-wifi-on-t-mobile-home-gateway-36457

 

[bill001g]

You can actually get 5g usb modems but the ones I have seen are being sold on the direct sale from china sites like aliexpress. Problem is you never really know what "5G" means and what ISP they are compatible with along with the sketchy reputation from many of these direct from china vendors.

As mentioned it is purely a supply and demand issue. There are not a lot of people that want a device like that. Something like that is more for portable use and many dedicated portable device like tablet and cellphones now come with internal support.

I am not real sure if you have actually tried using mobile broadband in your house. Most people find that the place the want to use their computer tends to not be the place they get optimum signal, I guess if you like sitting in the window. What many people do it put a mobile broadband router in the window that is nearest the cell tower and then user wifi or ethernet to connect to the device. For these people the hotspot or router is the best option and likely why you see mostly these devices being sold.

 

[zzzhhh]

Thank you guys. Just finished phone calls with all the ISPs I know of. The only available wireless home internet service at the address is T-Mobile. Since I need to Zoom with multimedia contents and remote desktop to my home Windows machine from where I work, a minimum uploading speed of 20 Mbps is required according to my experience. I'm not sure if T-Mobile can provide that speed because its claimed min upload speed is only 10Mbps. But a good news is that T-Mobile allows me to try for 15 days for free. If it does not work, I would have to order a construction of cable Internet from Xfinity, or reconsider my relocation plan. Thank you all guys again and have a nice day.