5G Launch In India Finally Happened, But Here’s Why You Can’t Access It Yet

Last Updated on October 4, 2022 by Anu Joy

The formal launch of 5G services, which the Prime Minister made at the India Mobile Congress (IMC) 2022 over the weekend, is slated to take effect today. The main telecom operators eyeing the number one spot are Airtel and Jio, while Vi and BSNL will roll out their services sometime next year. According to an announcement made by Airtel, its 5G services will be accessible starting today in eight cities, including Delhi, Mumbai, Varanasi, and Bengaluru. If you live in one of these cities and are wondering why the 5G network signal is not yet visible on your phone, there are a lot of potential causes. The majority of the issues will be covered in this article.

Here’s Why You Can’t Access 5G Yet

Network Availability

This is the main cause of your inability to use the 5G network right now. The carriers have claimed that a select number of cities will first receive 5G services. The services are being rolled out by Airtel in eight Indian cities and this will be expanded to more by the end of this year. At the IMC 5G launch, Jio announced that it would offer 5G to most parts of the country by December 2023, including rural regions. On the other hand, Airtel will cover the entire country by March 2024. So it’s a long wait for now.

5G Disabled

The 5G support on the handset might not be turned on, which is another reason why you can’t see the 5G network signal on your device. The majority of 5G phones on the market do not support 5G for now. A quick OTA update can allow this, and several smartphone makers, like realme, have already started issuing updates for their devices that support 5G.

No Proper Band Support

Similar to other mobile telephony generations, 5G makes use of many airwaves. To run their services in different bands, Airtel, Jio, and Vi have purchased the appropriate licenses. While the majority of new 5G smartphones support numerous 5G bands, certain older 5G devices may only have access to a small number of 5G bands, which might result in inconsistent 5G service on those devices. Buying a new smartphone with 5G capabilities will be the only way to solve this problem.

No 5G Tower Nearby

To utilise the network, you must be close to 5G towers even if you live in a city where 5G is being rolled out. It is currently unknown where those towers are and how much ground they cover. But we should know this soon, as telecom operators put out a more comprehensive service map.