5G: THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH

Vol 54: Mahjong to Mahjong - The Benchmarking Game of Crazy Comparisons! (the Asia Edition)

11/07/2025 | 52 pages
Price: $1,350.00

SRG just completed its 54th 5G benchmark study. For this endeavor we collaborated with Rohde & Schwarz to conduct our third benchmark study of operators’ networks in the Dallas Metro Area. For this study we included Boost Infinite (DISH Wireless) and FirstNet (AT&T). R&S collected the data on our behalf and we used its suite of analytical tools, as well as its NPS (Network Performance Score) framework for the analysis of the data.

Highlights of the Report include the following:

Our Thanks. We did this study with the support of Rohde & Schwarz, who collected the data on our behalf and who provided its suite of post-processing tools to allow us to analyze the data. This study leverages the R&S NPS framework, which is consistent with the ETSI TR recommendations for benchmarking mobile networks. SRG is responsible for all analysis and commentary provided in this report.

The Scope. We tested 5 operators’ networks in the Dallas Metro area, incorporating ~1,340 voice calls (WhatsApp and VoLTE/VoNR) as well as a suite of user-experience data tests, including DL/UL file transfers, DL/UL capacity tests, web browsing, video, e-gaming/interactivity, and social media to evaluate the networks.

The Results. Using the NPS framework as a basis for scoring the results, FirstNet (AT&T) took overall top honors, followed by T-Mobile (tied for 1st in data), Verizon, AT&T, and Boost Infinite (DISH).

The Whys. Although the outcome is interesting, we believe it is far more interesting to understand “the whys” which resulted in the scores. Band/technology selection played a role, and we believe priority treatment of traffic and a dedicated core network did as well. Only one operator’s network used VoNR, which both helped and hurt it, while the lower score for Boost Infinite had very little to do with the radio access network (i.e., don’t blame Open RAN).

A Deeper Dive. It wouldn’t be a Signals Ahead report if we didn’t look at lower layer metrics and parameters, including signal quality and coverage (SINR / RSRP), MIMO usage by 5G band and in total, 5G carrier aggregation, total bandwidth utilization, and MCS, to name a few.