Opensignal has released a benchmark analysis for 5G readiness across the U.S. in its latest “State of Mobile: USA” report by looking at the state of 4G performance nationwide.
The report measured 4G wireless performance across 50 states and major metro areas in the U.S. during the first quarter of 2019. It found that the average download speeds for smartphone users across the U.S. have risen slightly from 17 Mbps in Q1 2018 to 21.3 Mbps in Q1 2019.
Users in New Jersey had access to the fastest download speeds, averaging 32.9 Mbps, while the slowest speeds were found in Mississippi, averaging 12.1 Mbps. The report found that the fastest mobile download speeds were found in mid-Atlantic and New England population centers, as well in Ohio and Minnesota.
As far as cities go, Cleveland, Ohio and Minneapolis, Minnesota ranked at the top in terms of download speeds. Cleveland averaged 33.8 Mbps, while Minneapolis averaged 32.2 Mbps, according to Opensignal’s data. Oklahoma City was ranked last place, averaging 16.9 Mbps.
The report also found that smartphone users with 4G had LTE connections 93% of the time. Latency ranged from 44.1 milliseconds to 66.4 milliseconds across the U.S.
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The company predicts 4G will continue to be the dominate wireless technology for most U.S. smartphone users for the next few years.
“While small scale 5G launches are now occurring in limited areas within select cities in the U.S., the majority of users across the country continue to connect to 4G,” said Brendan Gill, CEO of Opensignal, in a statement. “Due to the sheer size of the U.S., limited mid-band spectrum and a measured rollout of 5G-equipped devices, we expect it will be several years before 5G surpasses 4G as the predominantly used wireless technology across the country.”
Opensignal said its benchmark report will help it measure network improvements as more 5G networks come online. It noted that upgrades to cell sites and cell site backhaul connections for 5G networks will likely also improve 4G network experiences for users. “If so, we will see improvements in the mobile network experience of non-5G users either just before or around the time of 5G launches,” it said in a blog post.