Does 5G mmWave have shorter range?

mmWave 5G easily goes beyond 300Mbps, often reaching 500Mbps or even 1Gbps . Getting that kind of data performance on a smartphone is nothing short of amazing, but because mmWave is still pretty unreliable, that breakneck performance isn’t always guaranteed.22 Haz 2021

5G mmWave signals more likely to be blocked by physical barriers such as walls, buildings, and trees because its signals are transmitted at higher frequencies (option D). This can be explained in the following way: Lower frequency bands cover a longer distance but have a slower data rate.

Millimeter waves — often referred to as mmWaves or high-band 5G — are frequencies starting at 24 GHz and beyond. As radio waves increase in frequency, each wave narrows in length. Because of its high frequencies, mmWave has a limited range of only 300 to 500 feet and struggles to penetrate buildings.

Some providers are leveraging massive MIMO deployment on existing towers as a bridge between LTE and 5G. The shorter range of 5G in mmWave and increased antenna quantity drive both competition and cost-cutting innovation among providers during deployment.