RootMetrics by IHS Markit, the standard for mobile performance benchmarking, today released the first in its series of 5G First Look Reports, discussing 5G performance by South Korean operators KT, LG U+, and SK Telecom.
The company’s 5G First look reports offer insight into the world of 5G and how 5G networks perform from the consumer’s perspective. The new report shows that LG U+ held an edge over the competition in Seoul by delivering the fastest 5G speeds and lowest latency among all networks, while also providing outstanding 5G data reliability.
During the early stages of 5G in South Korea, the results for LG U+ were a step above those of KT and SK Telecom, but all operators provided significantly faster speeds on 5G compared to non-5G mode. LG U+, for example, had an impressive 5G median download speed of 426.4 Mbps that would take only 12 seconds to download a 600MB television show. In contrast, downloading the same show at the operator’s non-5G mode median download speed of 96.1 Mbps would take closer to 51 seconds. LG U+ also delivered the fastest 5G maximum download speed at 902.7 Mbps, which indicates excellent potential for the operator’s 5G experience going forward.
Francis Sideco, VP, Technology, IHS Markit
The 5G speeds we found in South Korea will make consumer data experiences much faster than ever before. But 5G is about more than just speed. It’s also about reliability and latency, and all three South Korean operators delivered promising results across the board, especially considering the 5G era has just begun.
