Low-band 5G technology provides extensive coverage, reduces latency compared to 4G networks, and is less expensive to deploy[1]. However, low-band 5G has lower capacity compared to mid-band 5G, and it does not support high MIMO (multiple-input, multiple-output) configurations, though it is still used in many urban environments, including deep indoors[3].
Low-band spectrum typically accounts for around 18% of spectrum and mid-bands for 82%, depending on the country[3]. However, the larger antennas required for low-band spectrum limit the opportunity to increase spectral efficiency using MIMO and beamforming[3]. While the low band share of spectrum against mid-band is 18%, the share of capacity provided by low-band spectrum falls to 7% once more efficient MIMO and beamforming are introduced in mid-bands[3]. In areas where both mid- and low-band spectrum are available, data taken from mobile networks shows that low band typically carries between 10-20% of the traffic, revealing a gap between sub-1 GHz area traffic capacity and area traffic demand[3].
Additional low-band assignments can alleviate capacity gaps, and ensuring that additional low-band spectrum accompanies the expansion of mid-band and high band (mmWave) is crucial for maintaining digital equality[3]. In urban areas, real-world operator data demonstrates that 80% of network congestion occurs in low band, which carries 10-20% of average traffic in cities[3]. User-experienced data rates in the busiest hours when using low band can be 80% slower (DL) and 70% slower (UL) than mid-band[3].
Citations:
[1] https://nybsys.com/5g-bands/
[2] https://www.ericsson.com/en/blog/2021/6/what-why-how-5g-carrier-aggregation
[3] https://www.gsma.com/connectivity-for-good/spectrum/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/5G-Low-Band-Spectrum-1.pdf
[4] https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8512478/
[5] https://www.wilsonpro.com/blog/what-is-5g-low-band
[6] https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/15/6/5173
[7] https://www.gsma.com/connectivity-for-good/spectrum/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Socio-Economic-Benefits-of-Low-Band-Spectrum.pdf
[8] https://www.viavisolutions.com/en-us/literature/role-c-band-5g-application-notes-en.pdf