Tag: 5G

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Telus expands 5G network to six new communities in British Columbia

Telus has once again expanded its 5G network to more regions in British Columbia.

According to a series of press releases, residents and businesses in the following communities now have access to Vancouver-based carrier’s 5G internet service: Chetwynd, Cranbrook, Fort St. John, Kitimat, Prince Rupert, and Tumbler Ridge.

The upgrades are funded through a $13 billion investment from Telus, aimed at beefing up its 5G infrastructure in the province of B.C.

If this story seems familiar, that’s because this is the third major B.C.-focused network expansion announced by Telus this week.

On October 18th, Telus widened its 5G network on Vancouver Island to include Campbell River, Comox, Courtenay, Cumberland, and Saanich.

Two days later, on October 20th, the carrier’s 5G internet services became available in Grand Forks, Pemberton, Vernon, and Whistler.

Source: Telus, (2), (3), (4) (5)

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Disgruntled customer eggs a Vancouver Island cellphone store

On Saturday, employees at Quinsam Communications in Campbell River, Vancouver Island were left stunned when a man entered the store and began hurling eggs at displays, devices, and the workers.

The accused — dressed in a red sweatshirt with a grey bandana around his face walked in and began venting his frustration about Telus and its 5G technology. “This has got nothing to do with you, boys,” the accused said to the staff before pelting the business and the ‘boys’ with eggs.

According to the Campbell River Mirror, the accused believed that others were using Telus’ 5G network to gain access to his cellular devices, and based on his body language and tone, he appeared to be extremely unhappy about it.

Just when we thought that people are starting to understand that 5G is harmless, instances like this happen and decelerate the technology’s adoption. “We do run into people who are a little disgruntled by it and try and inform them the best we can,” said Cody Spetifore, a sales representative for Quinsam in a statement given to Vancouver Island News. “It’s not harmful and uses less power than 4G.”

Quinsam Communications was closed on Monday to clean up the mess.

Check out the recorded incident here.

Image credit: Vancouver Island News

Source: Vancouver Island News

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Ookla Q3 report names Telus Canada’s fastest mobile operator

Telus has kept its crown as Canada’s fastest mobile operator, according to a slew of new statistics in Ookla’s Q3 Canada Market Report for 2021.

For context, Ookla is the owner and operator of Speedtest.net, a free web service that analyzes your Internet’s performance.

According to data gathered from its speed-tracking tool, Ookla says Telus was the fastest mobile operator in Canada during Q3 2021, with a ‘Speed Score’ of 81.93.

Shaw came out on top as the country’s fastest fixed broadband provider, while the title of fastest 5G went to Bell for its median 5G download speed of 183.39 Mbps, narrowly beating Telus’ 176.38 Mbps.

Meanwhile, Vidéotron kept it steady for yet another fiscal quarter, earning the title of Canada’s most consistent mobile operator in Q3 with a score of 87.4 percent

In terms of geography, Ookla found that Newfoundland and Labrador are Canada’s fastest regions for both fixed broadband and mobile, clocking in a median download speed of 124.22 Mbps

Calgary was named the city with the highest population with the best median fixed broadband download speed (134.33 Mbps), while Halifax won the mobile download speed category (113.10 Mbps).

Finally, the report claims that while Samsung devices earned the fastest combined performance scores in Q3 with a median download speed of 64.14 Mbps, edging out Apple’s 58.12 Mbps, the iPhone 13 Pro Max was the fastest popular device overall with a median download speed of 164.63 Mbps.

Past Ookla reports from 2021 found that Canada is no longer among the top 10 fastest countries for internet speeds, that 5G speeds in Ottawa are middling compared to other capital cities, that Alberta’s Waterton Lakes National Park boasts the fastest download speeds amoung Canada’s national parks, and that SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet service performs best in Saskatchewan.

Source: Ookla

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Rogers expands 5G service to 11 regions in Greater Montreal

Rogers’ 5G internet service is now available to more people living in the Greater Montreal area.

The company announced that 90 communities in 11 cities and towns can now connect to Rogers’ 5G network .

The specific regions listed in the press release are Beaconsfield, Boucherville, Brossard, Dorval, Drummondville, Longueuil, Mascouche, Mont Tremblant, Saint-Constant, Saint-Lambert, and Terrebonne.

Interestingly, two of the regions listed — Dorval and Longueuil — are the home to major airports, including Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport (YUL).

This could affect the 5G service available in those areas to Rogers customers, as the federal government is restricting 5G service near some airports over concerns of possible interference between radio waves and aviation navigation tools.

To date, Rogers says it has improved wireless network connectivity in over 162 Quebec communities this year, and plans to boost connectivity in 360 communities total by the end of 2021.

Prior to this, Roger’s last 5G network expansion announcement was on September 23rd for the Nova Scotian regions of Dartmouth and Bedford.

Meanwhile, Telus — one of Roger’s main telecom competitors — recently announced a $90 million investment in 5G infrastructure, also in the Greater Montreal region.

Source: Rogers

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Federal government drops surprise restrictions on 5G service near airports

Canadians living near airports may have a hard time getting 5G service thanks to a surprise announcement from the federal government.

The feds announced new restrictions on 5G service near most major airports over concerns of possible interference between the radio waves — called spectrum — used in 5G communications and certain aviation navigation tools. According to the Toronto Star, radio altimeters on aircraft operate on the 4,200 to 4,400 megahertz (MHz) frequency band, which is near the recently-auctioned 3,500MHz spectrum considered crucial to mid-band (or Sub-6) 5G.

Using Toronto’s Pearson Airport as an example, the restrictions banning 5G base stations cover a large area around the runways themselves. Moreover, restrictions covering two long stretches from Etobicoke to Brampton and from Downsview to Mississauga will limit power use, which can affect network performance. A map from the Star shows the restricted areas.

Restriction 5G areas around Pearson (Source: Toronto Star)

The Department of Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) said on August 6th that it would hold a brief consultation before applying the restrictions around airports where planes are permitted to use automated landing.

The Star also detailed comments from carriers that are, unsurprisingly, upset about the restrictions. Telus was among the most vocal and claimed the restrictions reduced the $2 billion value of 3,500MHz spectrum it acquired at the recent auction by about $100 million. Telus also claims the government’s restrictions are more drastic than precautions taken in other countries.

For example, U.S. regulators determined a guard band of 220MHz would be “sufficient” to protect aviation industry needs. Further, Telus claims Australia and Japan implemented guard zones of 200MHz and 100MHz respectively. The Canadian government, however, proposed a buffer zone between 550MHz and 700MHz.

In an email statement to the Star, ISED says it issued a bulletin in March, well before the spectrum auction, committing to study the issue. The bulletin also warned that the government may develop rules for 5G operation in the new spectrum band.

Although the carriers may gripe about the limitations, Canadians living in regions covered by the new restrictions will also lose out, especially if they’ve already upgraded to a new 5G-capable device in anticipation of the 3,500MHz rollout.

Source: Toronto Star

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Canada will decide whether to ban Huawei 5G tech in ‘coming weeks’

The question of whether Canada will permit Huawei technology onto the country’s 5G mobile network will soon be answered, according to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

When asked by reporters, the PM said that the government “will no doubt be making announcements in the coming weeks,” as per an article by Reuters.

Trudeau’s statement comes a week after Huawei’s chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, was allowed to return to China after being on house arrest in Vancouver for three years.

Canadian police arrested Meng in December 2018 over fraud charges levied against her by the United States government.

Since Meng’s arrest, some have called into question whether Huawei devices should be allowed in Canada.

These concerns came to a head in June, when a leaked government report compiled by Clairvoyance Cyber Corp for Public Safety Canada was made public through an Access to Information requisition

The report claimed there was an increase in cyberattacks carried out using Huawei devices in Canada following Meng’s arrest.

According to Reuters, all four other countries in the “Five Eyes” — an international intelligence alliance, of which Canada is the fifth member — have instituted their own national bans against Huawei’s 5G devices.

Those countries are Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

Source: Reuters

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Samsung test uses mmWave 5G to boost Wi-Fi speeds on Seoul subway

Samsung has announced that it successfully tested a way to improve Wi-Fi service on fast-moving subway trains using 5G mmWave for backhaul.

The company ran a trial in South Korea, demonstrated that 5G could help significantly boost legacy Wi-Fi service in crowded, public settings. According to a press release from Samsung, the test saw Wi-Fi downlink speeds of 1.8Gbps using a Galaxy S21 Ultra on a moving subway train, an impressive 25 times faster than the current average of 71Mbps.

Samsung used its ‘Compact Macro‘ hardware to help boost Wi-Fi speeds using the ultra-high capacity of 5G mmWave. The test covered five stations on the subway line through downtown Seoul. It also used 800Mhz of the 28GHz spectrum band.

As a quick refresher, spectrum refers to radio wave frequencies used by cellular networks to transmit data to and from mobile devices. With 5G, mmWave represents high-capacity but low-range spectrum — you can read more about the differences between mmWave and Sub-6 5G here.

While Samsung’s test is certainly impressive, it could be a long time before we see anything like that here in Canada. First, Canadian carriers have only just gained access to some Sub-6 5G spectrum and it’ll be a while before Canadians start getting access to it — mmWave remains even further away.

And if that wasn’t enough, the Big Three still refuse to offer service in Toronto’s TTC subway lines because the city contracted BAI Canada to manage connectivity. Along with free Wi-Fi through TConnect, BAI worked with Shaw’s Freedom Mobile to bring service to customers on the TTC, while Rogers, Bell and Telus previously indicated they’d rather install their own systems than use BAI’s.

BAI could install the Samsung hardware itself, but since it leverages 5G backhaul to boost speeds, the company would likely need a 5G-capable carrier partner too.

Source: Samsung

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Telus expands 5G network to seven locations in British Columbia

Telus announced that seven communities in British Columbia can now access its 5G internet network.

This news affects residents and businesses in the following B.C. locations: Bulkley-Nechako, Fort St. James, Houston, Parksville, Port Hardy, Qualicum Beach, and Richmond.

Telus made the announcement in a series of back-to-back press releases shared on September 27th, which we’ve linked to at the end of this article.

A $13 billion investment from Telus is funding all seven of these expansions. The investment is aimed at improving Telus’ internet services in B.C. specifically, from now until 2024.

Other B.C. communities recently targeted by this investment include Maple Ridge and Burnaby.

Meanwhile, in Quebec, Telus also substantially expanded its 5G network this month in Outaouais, Lanaudière and Laurentides, as well as in the Greater Montreal region (including Montérégie).

The Vancouver-based company is investing $9 billion towards growing its 5G infrastructure in Quebec.

Source: Telus, (2), (3), (4), (5)

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Defining 5G: What all that weird jargon really means

Everyone seems to be talking about 5G, but I still see a lot of confusion about the technology and what it actually means.

Things aren’t helped by the fact that nearly every carrier is pushing the next-gen connectivity standard, despite 5G not existing in any meaningful way in Canada.

For example, if you buy a new smartphone, chances are it’ll have ‘5G’ in the name, or at least support the technology. Even lower-cost, budget phones like the Pixel 4a 5G sport the tech. It’s basically everywhere in Canada and, impressively, nowhere at the same time.

“Sub-6 is shorthand for sub 6GHz, or spectrum below 6,000MHz.”

The short and simple explanation for 5G is that the term stands for “5th-generation mobile network,” and represents a variety of technologies that enable faster wireless networks, increased bandwidth, lower latency, and more.

Ultimately, that’s really all most people need to know. As more 5G networks come online, people will start to see new technologies leveraging the improved networks. Existing technologies and network applications will also get better (i.e. faster downloads, more stable video streaming, etc.). But, for those interested in the types of 5G that are out there, read on.

Making sense of Sub-6 and mmWave

5G can be split into three main groups: low-, mid- and high-band 5G.

Low-band 5G generally refers to radio wave spectrum below one gigahertz (GHz) or 1,000 megahertz (MHz). In Canada, the vast majority of 5G networks currently available use low-band 5G.

Unfortunately, 3G and 4G networks also use low-band spectrum, which means that for most people, there isn’t a significant difference between using 4G or 5G at the moment. Moreover, there just isn’t a lot of spectrum available in this range, whether you’re running on 5G, 4G or 3G.

That’s where mid-band, or Sub-6 5G, comes in. Sub-6 is shorthand for sub 6GHz, or spectrum below 6,000MHz. This is an important area to watch for Canadians, as Sub-6 will be some of the first meaningful 5G we’ll get. The government recently auctioned off 3,500MHz spectrum, and when carriers start to implement networks using it, we should begin to see some actual benefits.

“Most places, including Canada, have focused on Sub-6 5G, but the U.S. started with mmWave.”

Sub-6 5G is a great middle-ground since it offers higher speeds and performance than low-band spectrum, but doesn’t suffer from the same range limitations of high-band 5G, also called mmWave.

mmWave covers spectrum in the 25-39GHz range, which offers much higher speeds up to the gigabit level. Unfortunately, these radio waves can’t travel further than a few hundred metres. They also struggle to pass through objects like trees or walls.

Although more limited, mmWave can offer significant boosts to speed in scenarios where range isn’t a huge factor. For example, urban areas allow carriers to build dense mmWave networks.

Most places, including Canada, have focused on Sub-6 5G, but the U.S. started with mmWave. That’s why you often see insanely fast mobile speeds in U.S. cities, but 5G coverage overall can be extremely spotty. However, that will change over time.

There’s been a lot of talk about the possibilities 5G brings, potential applications of the technology, and much, much more. Although many of the prospects are exciting, we’re still years away from having the 5G saturation needed to support those ideas.

In other words, there’s reason to be hyped about 5G in Canada, but for now, keep your expectations tempered.

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Rogers expands 5G to Dartmouth and Bedford, Nova Scotia

Toronto-based national telecom company Rogers announced it expanded 5G coverage to more areas in Nova Scotia.

In an email release, the carrier said it expanded 5G in Dartmouth and Bedford, Nova Scotia. The expansion brings Rogers’ 5G to a total of 16 communities across the Atlantic region, including Halifax, Moncton, Saint John and Fredericton, all part of a broader series of investments in Canada’s east coast.

Along with the 5G improvement, Rogers “enhanced” wireless networks across 32 communities in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Labrador and Prince Edward Island over the last 20 months.

Rogers also boasted about its investment in wireline network upgrades, which the company says helped improve connections across 71 communities in Atlantic Canada.

“We’re proud to enhance connectivity in cities, towns, and rural communities across Atlantic Canada, especially during the pandemic when world-class connections have played a critical role in people’s lives,” said Matt MacLellan, president of the Atlantic region at Rogers.

Rogers says its ongoing investments have enabled enhanced connectivity to over 1,000 Canadian communities and will expedite plans to bring enhanced connectivity to an additional 750 communities by the end of 2021.