State of Wireless in 2026: The Technologies That Matter
It’s Been a While A lot has happened since the last Cellular Insights article. Apparently, so has life. What was supposed to be a short break somehow turned into… well… long enough for mobile operators to launch new network features, modem vendors to announce another generation of silicon, and 3GPP to add a few more acronyms to everyone’s vocabulary. The good news is that the wireless industry certainly didn’t stand still. Since the last article, U.S. operators have quietly rolled out some of the most meaningful network improvements since the introduction of Standalone 5G. Better […]
From Mid-Band to Multi-Gigabit: How Device Capability Defines 5G Performance
Commissioned by Qualcomm Technologies, Inc This short-form analysis compares mmWave (FR2) and sub-6 GHz (FR1) performance in Verizon’s 5G Standalone (SA) network using devices from two leading OEMs. As with our previous study, the devices are powered by chipsets from Qualcomm and Apple, representing the recent commercially available modem platforms from each vendor. Testing took place in Times Square, New York City in August 2025, an environment selected for its consistently high pedestrian density and unique RF conditions. Devices Under Test (DUTs): Our original intent was to conduct this evaluation inside a large-capacity venue such […]
Comparative 5G Performance Report: Android Smartphones vs. iPhone 16e
Commissioned by Qualcomm Technologies, Inc Executive Summary This report presents a comparative evaluation of 5G performance between the iPhone 16e, equipped with Apple’s first-generation C1 modem, and two Qualcomm-powered Android smartphones. Testing was conducted across a variety of real-world radio environments–near-, mid-, and far-cell within New York City connected to T-Mobile’s sub6 GHz Standalone (SA) network. Across all RF scenarios, the Qualcomm-based Android devices consistently outperformed the iPhone 16e, revealing several key advantages: Average Throughput Advantage (3 Locations, NYC): These findings underscore the performance gap between iPhone 16e powered by Apple’s C1 modem and Android […]
Telstra’s Gigabit Class LTE Network, a work of art
We just came back from Sydney, Australia where we had the opportunity to experience the world’s first Gigabit Class LTE network operated by Telstra, using the world’s first commercially available Gigabit Class LTE device, Netgear® Nighthawk M1 powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon™ X16 LTE modem. As we are still in the process of analyzing the collected data, this brief overview should offer our initial impressions. The vast majority of outdoor tests were conducted on March 14th & 15th and included visits to iconic locations throughout Sydney’s Central Business District (CBD). On March 16th stormy weather limited […]
Sprint’s Gigabit Class LTE network goes live in New Orleans
On Wednesday night at an event held at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Sprint showed off commercial readiness of their Gigabit Class LTE network, achieving peak speeds in excess of 700Mbps in a live network. Nokia provided the infrastructure including Nokia Flexi basestations installed throughout the basketball arena, permanently adding coverage and capacity. Motorola supplied pre-commercial Category 16 LTE handsets powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 SoC, with integrated Gigabit Class X16 LTE modem. The yet to be released device supported 256QAM Modulation, and included a quad antenna design for 4×4 MIMO operation on Sprint’s 2.5GHz network. Sprint has […]
Cellular Insights
State of LTE Advanced
In the fast paced world of technology, we just may be in the midst of a summer to remember with the complete hysteria over Pokémon Go, and the growing use of Facebook Live streaming. What will be interesting to watch on the wireless front is if the cellular networks are ready for another inevitable signaling storm, and a spike in mobile data consumption. As we approach this year’s mid mark, let’s review the current state of LTE in our home market of New York City, addressing existing conditions and both challenges and opportunities to come. In our previous article […]
5G, The Long Road Ahead
Over the past year or so, 5G has become a hot topic of discussion in telecom industry, with several operators rushing to make premature announcements. But in reality 5G hasn’t been defined, and commercial user equipment is not expected to hit the market until at least 2020. Initially, Verizon had a rather optimistic 2016-2017 timeline for their 5G commercial product, but quickly reverted to a more relaxed projection involving a fixed broadband solution targeted for 2018. Why all the hype then? Well for one, competition in the wireless industry has never been more fierce, and any perception of technological competitive advantage could be used for […]
Welcome to Cellular Insights!
In our hyper-connected world, smartphones have taken center stage. Obsession with bigger screens, faster processors with more cores, and better cameras with higher megapixel count is reaching a new all time high. At the same time, mainstream tech blogs are increasingly struggling to differentiate from the rest, while the smartphone market is becoming extremely saturated. But rather than bombarding you with redundant smartphone unboxing videos, camera performance reviews, subjective opinions on design and user interface, we will evaluate the modem, antenna, and front end performance of popular smartphones. Our goal is to bring this essential and long forgotten topic to the forefront, […]