Sprint's 5G network will be reliable, but its speed could hold it back

Sprint — which is set to launch its mobile 5G network in four cities next month — outlined its strategy to make its network more usable and accessible at NYU's annual 5G summit on April 24, according to PC Mag.The carrier's strategy relies on the use of dual connectivity — simultaneous 4G and 5G network connections — and the mid-band 2.5GHz spectrum.Here's what it means: Sprint likely perceives the use of dual connectivity as well as its reliance on a 2.5GHz spectrum as its two biggest initial competitive advantages in the 5G space. Sprint will be the first carrier in the US to rely on 5G's dual connectivity capability. The capability allows phones to combine 5G and 4G networks to enable faster download speeds. This could make the user experience smoother with fewer interruptions than competitors like AT&T and Verizon, which use 4G to establish a 5G phone's initial connection and don't yet enable dual connectivity downloads. Relying on the 2.5GHz mid-band spectrum will allow Sprint to offer a wide coverage area. Sprint's spectrum supports both 4G and 5G and provides a balance between the fast data speeds offered by high-frequency spectrums, like mmWave, and the wide reach and penetration of low-band frequency. For comparison, AT&T and Verizon use mmWave technology, which provides very fast speeds but smaller coverage areas that can be spotty in buildings. For example, when rival Verizon launched its 5G network in Minneapolis and Chicago earlier this month, it was hit with reports of limited and spotty coverage that doesn't always work well in buildings, offering download speeds that are the same as or slower than 4G LTE in tests.The bigger picture: Despite these initial advantages, Sprint's lower peak download speeds could hurt adoption of its 5G network.Sixty-three percent of consumers cite faster network speeds as the reason they would be willing to pay more for 5G, indicating that the technology's blazing fast speed is critical for customers looking into the service. But despite Sprint's wide reach, the service's speeds will reportedly peak between 400Mbps and 600Mbps — far slower than the 1.3Gbps that AT&T has registered on its 5G network, for example.A lack of ultra-high-speed internet could offset some of the gains the carrier gets from widespread coverage, and ultimately impact consumer adoption of Sprint.