Apple took the wraps off its latest iPhone, the iPhone 13. But the company spent almost no time talking about 5G during its unveiling event.

Apple is widely expected to announce its iPhone 13 during an event next week. Here are six themes to track as Apple shows off its latest smartphone wares.

In-person attendance at the show was clearly far less than the 2019 show in Denver, prior to the pandemic. But the executives who attended this year's Big 5G Event had a bounce in their step.

Companies ranging from Verizon to Apple have been reluctant to talk at length about 6G. And that's what makes Mike Irizarry of UScellular so noteworthy: He's an outspoken proponent of 6G.

The Big 5G Event is happening in Denver next week. It will be one of the first in-person trade shows for the US telecom industry since the pandemic started. Here is what to expect.

LG said its 6G connection traveled in the 155-175GHz band and used adaptive beamforming and high gain antenna switching technology. The test signals more momentum in the space beyond 5G.

A laptop tethered to a phone via a Wi-Fi hotspot is consuming data in the exact same set-up that a smart watch tethered to a phone via Bluetooth is consuming data. But the cost is much, much different.

Shentel has historically been a cable and mobile provider, but is now transitioning into a fiber and fixed wireless network operator. It plans to more than double its coverage footprint in the process.

The Senate is now scheduled to debate legislation that would set aside $65 billion for broadband in the US. Here are six takeaways from the newest version of this proposal.

It's time to blow out the mmWave candle following an OpenSignal report showing that the average time most users spend on mmWave 5G is less than 1%, three years into the rollout of the technology.

Companies like AT&T and Dish Network are putting their core network operations into the Big Tech cloud at the same time that Republicans and Democrats are uniting in their anger at FAANG.

AT&T and Verizon are both pivoting away from media and content to focus more carefully on their connectivity businesses. Meantime, Comcast is enjoying an upswing across both content and connectivity.

Billionaire Charlie Ergen is the majority shareholder of two companies with far-reaching 5G ambitions. Will they combine forces and bring 5G to the world?

As the dust settles on the FCC's blockbuster C-band spectrum auction for 5G, investors appear to be turning to other potential sources of spectrum once thought unusable or uninteresting.

A wide range of companies – from mobile network operators to cloud computing companies to startups – are colliding in their pursuit of the private wireless networking opportunity.

AT&T plans to use fixed wireless some of the time. Except in locations where customers are using a lot of data. And it will somehow be able to figure this out before actually serving those customers. Make sense?

Amid rejoicing at the apparent end of a pandemic, Verizon believes the time is 'perfect' to offer a promotion worth more than $1,000. The stage is set for a fierce battle over 5G customers.

'Big Tech has been enjoying a free ride on our Internet infrastructure,' wrote FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr, the latest indication that Internet companies may soon pay to cross the digital divide.

A decade ago, there was a debate involving LTE-Advanced, 4.5G and 4.9G. Today, the same debate is brewing around 5.5G, 5G-Advanced and, potentially, 6G.

The US wireless industry collected a total of more than 7 million new postpaid phone customers during the past 12 months. Where are all these new customers coming from?

'Flight attendants will soon have up to the minute digital catering inventory and be able to quickly locate items without opening a single door, using the camera on iPhone 12 and augmented reality,' Delta said.

The big three US carriers continue to tout new networks, but they remain relatively indifferent about helping customers connect without traditional telco frustrations.

T-Mobile plans to sell 100Mbit/s connections to up to 30 million US households for $60 per month. However, there remain a number of questions surrounding the effort.

T-Mobile is now offering a free 5G phone alongside promises of cheaper 5G services than the competition. The operator's announcement may represent the final piece of its 5G puzzle.

Who will benefit from Biden's broadband plan? Should broadband be considered a utility? And what even is broadband? The answers to these questions could have major implications.

Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile have each already tried to make a 5G splash by deploying the technology first via 4G, then via highband spectrum and finally in lowband spectrum. What will the third phase of 5G look like?

T-Mobile lowered its customer expectations for fixed wireless. Verizon dramatically shifted its buildout plans. And AT&T is pretty sure that 'you don't have the capacity' to challenge cable.

Verizon's customer support implied that 5G will drain customers' phone batteries. What they really meant is that 5G is not yet worth using.

Digital Colony will take Boingo private in a transaction valued at around $854 million. It's Marc Ganzi's latest step toward 'digital infrastructure' convergence.

T-Mobile is hoping to encourage customers to sign up for new, more expensive Magenta MAX service by removing monthly usage limits.

According to some analysts, the FCC should announce the results of the C-band auction for 5G spectrum by Friday, February 26. If that's the case, the US market for 5G ought to soon gain more clarity.

As CEO of T-Mobile, John Legere turned the company around and positioned it to directly challenge the market's leaders. Now, in his self-imposed retirement, he's hosting shows on Instagram.

SBA is leasing space on thousands of structures owned by utility PG&E for a period of 100 years. It's an example of the increasingly complicated market for vertical real estate.

Although Verizon's overall 5G strategy has been mostly corona'ed, there are plenty of reasons for the company to continue pushing its '5G Built Right' advertising campaign.

In the same quarter that Verizon ordered 15,000 small cells from Crown Castle, T-Mobile canceled an order for 5,700. On balance though, analysts remain positive about the small cell market.

Comcast plans to resume stock buybacks, an indication it did not bid heavily on C-band licenses. That, combined with the company's new MVNO deal, likely indicates Verizon will keep its cable strategy intact.

BSA, CableLabs, GSMA and the Telecom Infra Project (TIP) are teaming up with the Open RAN Policy Coalition for 'responsible policy action in support of open RAN.'

Officials in the Biden administration offered little specificity when it came to China and Huawei, but they voiced support for a cohesive 5G spectrum strategy and changes to social media oversight.

The US government's Lifeline program collects fees from telecom companies in order to help poor Americans pay for connectivity. AT&T and Verizon are proposing sweeping changes to that setup.

Apple is reportedly preparing to unveil a virtual reality headset as early as next year. But the gadget shouldn't excite 5G operators just yet.

This year promises to include everything from C-band deployments to a possible reset in US-China relations by President Biden. The future of the 5G industry is at stake.

Samsung, the world's largest smartphone vendor, released new flagship Galaxy S21 phones. The gadgets have significant implications for the 5G industry.

Verizon's CEO dispensed with the speeds and feeds that often dominate 5G discussions. Instead, he showed off some real-world 5G services, alongside a tacit nod toward the wider American zeitgeist.

Sky-high prices for 3G spectrum licenses helped to ruin many European operators after auctions in the 2000s. With $70 billion in current bids, the C-band auction could do the same to US operators.

The fact that bidders have so far put up $25 billion in total bids appears to reflect a widespread belief that 5G will ultimately be worth it.

'5G Ultra Wideband,' 'Extended Range 5G,' '5G+,' '5Ge,' '5GTF,' '5G Nationwide' and plain-old '5G' are just some of the labels Americans will have to navigate. Good luck with that.

In 2018, AT&T loudly boasted that it was the first operator in the US to launch mobile 5G in mmWave spectrum. Now, two years later, the operator has little to show for its efforts.

Docomo in Japan is now selling 5G for around half of what its fellow incumbents charge. If Dish enters the 5G market in the US, AT&T and Verizon might be forced into a similar position.

FedEx is working with Dell and Switch to build mini data centers in its facilities for edge computing. What the company might do with those resources could have implications for 5G.

China's telecoms regulator counts fully 600,000 5G basestations in the country. Meantime, one analyst firm has recorded sales of just 6 million 5G phones in the US this year.

Tesla, the world's most valuable auto maker, plans to charge $10,000 for its new self-driving service. Meanwhile, 5G remains free to users on most top-tier mobile plans.

Edge computing promises to reduce users' latency speeds. And now, some operators are not only addressing the space but seeking revenues from the sale of low-latency services.

T-Mobile is on its way toward covering 100 million people with speedy midband 5G this year. And its 5G services are up to 25% cheaper than those from AT&T and Verizon.

AT&T's promotions around the new iPhone are far more aggressive than those from Verizon and T-Mobile. Indeed, one analyst warned that it's the most aggressive promotion ever.

From its pricing plans to its support of Verizon's millimeter wave 5G strategy, Apple had plenty to say during its iPhone 12 unveiling.

A disagreement among Trump appointees over 5G has engulfed everyone from the FCC to the DoD. 'Our government is a mess,' concludes one financial analyst firm.

The 'year of 5G' has come and gone a few times now, but it's clear that 4G continues to play the role of workhorse while 5G stands only as the showhorse.

The US wireless industry is rallying around the C-V2X standard for car-to-car communications, and is warning that China could dominate the market if action isn't taken.

AT&T and Verizon are mobilizing against a spectrum-leasing deal between T-Mobile and Columbia Capital. But the upcoming C-band auction is at the heart of the issue.

T-Mobile has more than double the low- and midband 5G spectrum of Verizon. But what will CEO Mike Sievert do when Apple launches the 5G iPhone?

The event attracted speakers ranging from Rakuten's Tareq Amin to US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. That's because open RAN today is everything to everyone.

The Department of Homeland Security's cybersecurity agency said it's going to 'analyze components from 5G vendors,' but the details of the program are unclear at best.

Midband spectrum licenses in the middle of nowhere, Texas, sold for an astounding $141 per MHz/POP. And that has significant implications for private networks, IoT and 5G.

Comcast, Charter and Cox collectively spent more than $1 billion on wireless spectrum. Will they choose the safe buildout path, or will they risk an open RAN strategy?

Dish Network's work with smaller vendors and Rakuten's turn away from Cisco and Nokia are early indicators that Open RAN may well be having an effect on the market.

President Trump's mention of a 'national' 5G network raises questions around Newt Gingrich and Rivada Networks, but lacks information, substance, detail and logic.

Whether it's from Amazon or Microsoft or Google, the perfect storm of online game streaming is coming, and those operators that are unprepared will soon stand out.

Infinera's outgoing CEO described the situation as a 'once-in-a-lifetime opportunity' for companies that compete against the Chinese vendor.

FCC Commissioner Michael O'Rielly has worked to free up critical midband spectrum for 5G. Now he doesn't have a job, reportedly because he disagreed with Trump's campaign against Twitter.

Executives at companies ranging from EdgeMicro to Deutsche Telekom have suggested that videoconferencing could be improved by edge computing. But others offer a decidedly less rosy view of the notion.

Starlink has promised to offer 100Mbit/s downloads nationwide, with latency of roughly 30mn. But given the number of unknowns surrounding the LEO provider, ISPs probably don't need to worry just yet.

As companies like Ericsson, AT&T and Comcast prepare to report their second-quarter results, the industry will be listening intently for comments on the recession, network capex and what the future holds.

Masks are becoming de rigueur among retail stores operated by the nation's biggest wireless network operators. But that doesn't mean every store that sells cell phones requires a mask.

The 3GPP is expected to issue 'Release 16' of the 5G standard Friday. It will support fancy new technologies like network slicing, Integrated Access Backhaul and vehicle platooning.

Verizon has loudly touted its plans to expand its mmWave 5G network. But AT&T and T-Mobile have remained conspicuously silent on the topic.

While dozens of companies debate the US government's role in open RAN, the almighty dollar is driving the discussion.

Microsoft's CEO sees a future of 'remote everything.' As a result, there's a growing consensus among lawmakers that Internet access is no longer a 'nice to have' but a 'need to have.'

President Trump is reportedly preparing a $1 trillion stimulus proposal that would include a 5G element. But how the president doles out money for 5G remains a mystery.

The US State Department is proposing an 'Integrated and Open Networks' (ION) approach to 5G and Huawei, but the effort doesn't seem to have much support beyond US Attorney General William Barr.

The FCC has been tasked with ripping Huawei's equipment out of US wireless networks. Now it has to figure out what goes in its place.

Growing evidence points to a major new agreement between Verizon and Walmart that involves the retailer using Verizon's 5G and edge computing services for a variety of retail offerings.

Also, it happened on a Tuesday (which would reinforce the alliteration in the headline) but I decided that thing was totally tiring.

One of the premier US telecom standards organizations is now pushing for a new public-private partnership to ensure the US 'will be at the forefront of 6G development and deployment.'

AT&T said it will comply with the National Advertising Review Board and will discontinue its '5G Evolution' adverting. But its '5GE' icon will stay.

Cable providers like Comcast and Charter have already outstripped AT&T and Verizon in terms of quarterly postpaid mobile customer additions. What they do next could cement their mobile ambitions.

Verizon's Hans Vestberg wants to take 5G nationwide, just in time for a 5G iPhone in the fall. But he's working to lower expectations for nationwide 5G working in lowband spectrum.

Is global Internet traffic going to return to normal as the pandemic subsides? Or will it remain where it is? Corning's Wendell Weeks might have some insight here.

The Wi-Fi industry is targeting areas like fixed wireless, telehealth, VR, precision manufacturing, private networks and smart cities for expansion. That could worry 5G folks.

Facebook is investing $5.7 billion into one of India's leading mobile network operators. Could Dish Network score the same kind of agreement with an Internet company for its 5G ambitions?

Samsung has long worked to match its products to network operators' desires. But in 5G that strategy does not appear to have paid off.

A cell site in New Jersey appears to have been vandalized due to a belief that 5G causes COVID-19.

Some Wall Street analysts see the spread of the new coronavirus as hastening society's embrace of online life. And that could motivate network operators to invest in their networks.

Verizon is widely expected to dominate the FCC's planned auction of midband C-Band spectrum for 5G. That's because there's no firm limit to how much C-Band spectrum Verizon can acquire.

Smart city executives are leaving AT&T and Verizon. The reason? The FCC's new small cell rules eliminate the need for operators to push for smart city agreements.

Will 5G go up to 10 Gbit/s? The application of networking technologies, including carrier aggregation across wide stretches of spectrum, could get us there... at some point.

TracFone, the largest MVNO in the US, recently hinted at a service called SmartSIM. If TracFone does indeed launch such an offering, what would it look like?

If you're still going to Barcelona this year, please let me know.

Small cells are rolling out in neighborhoods all over the US. I decided to go find mine.

5G is going to play a big role during this year's Super Bowl. But each of the top US wireless network operators is taking a slightly different tack when it comes to the big game.

A new year is upon us, but neither Verizon nor AT&T has shared concrete, quantifiable plans for 5G in millimeter-wave spectrum in 2020. Is this cause for concern?