Mobile network frequency and mobile router optimisation

I never was a network export or wanted to be one, but I happened to be playing with my mobile network in order to get some decent internet connection.

What is network frequency?

Mobile network frequency is the bandwidth the internet operates on, typically expressed in the unit of MHz, or simply B1, B3 and etc when referring to 4G LTE network, and they are not some magic numbers, each band corresponds to a specific range of frequencies, such as B1 is typically 2100MHz, and so on.

Network providers tend to have a selection of frequency bands for them to operate on in the UK, and by being able to utilise most of their available bands efficiently, you can really release the true potential of the network.

Take three mobile for example, the primary operating bands are B3 (1800 MHz) and B20 (800 MHz) according to this wiki. By using a cellular tower checking service like this, you can really see the detailed information about the positioning of masts, the bands they operate on, and the coverage in your area. 

Now, knowing all the basic information about how a mobile network is set up and operates, you can make the best decision for yourself on which network provider to use, considering the number of cellular towers in your area, the coverage, and the strength of the signal, and in this case, these factors are always bigger the better.

Choose a suitable mobile router

The last piece of the puzzle is choosing a good mobile router. There are also a couple of things to consider, namely, the network bands the router can receive the signal from, and the network standard the router can support.

  • Network bands support should be easy to understand because even though your mobile network provider has got a wide range of bands available, it's only as good as the ones you can actually make use of, a typical example would be comparing Huawei B315 router (which lists B1/3/7/8/20/38 as the operational bands here) with Huawei B535 router (which lists B1/3/7/8/20/28/32/38 as the operational bands here), and sometimes, it could be because of that subtle difference that makes heaven and hell.
  • The network standard typically refers to CAT6, or something similar, as it's very thoroughly explained here, I wouldn't bother reiterating, but I will only emphasise that number is also the higher the better, theoretically.
There is another trick I've learned by browsing people's reviews and reading comments: if you do know which network bands your network provider supports, you can tune your mobile router to only to listen to these bands. The theory is that by optimising which channels the router is listening to, it saves the "try and error" time. And this does not happen by magic but by good tooling provided by good people on the internet.

What about 5G?


So what about 5G? As far as I know, 5G is still pretty much up in the air in my area, and I have no idea when I am gonna benefit from it. But certainly, it wouldn't hurt to be prepared for it, according to the wiki, UK network providers have set out to use Band n78, and if you are after a future-proof mobile router, that would be something to look out for in the specifications. 

Whether or not that's gonna change, given the UK government seems to be determined to replace Huawei with other alternatives in the network infrastructure, for now, it's anyone's guess.

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