iOS 16.4 adds offline 5G support for iPhone 3Gbps speed.

Your iPhone will soon be able to support T-Mobile’s offline 5G network at up to 3Gbps with iOS 16.4, which also brings 5G support to more regions.

• What’s happening? iOS 16.4 brings support for T-Mobile’s offline 5G network in the US and 5G networks in Turkey and Macau.
• Why care? 5G Standalone can provide speeds up to 3Gbps on Samsung smartphones. The iPhone could be the next one to take advantage of this technology.
• What to do? Download and install iOS 16.4 when it arrives.

iOS 16.4 and offline 5G network T-Mobile

Cellular settings in iOS 16.4 have a new toggle for connecting to 5G standalone networks (5G SA). 5G SA service is currently offered by T-Mobile, the only US carrier that fully supports 5G SA as of this writing.

The 5G SA service provides data transfer speeds up to 3Gbps on Samsung’s flagship smartphones. The addition of 5G SA support in iOS 16.4 indicates that the iPhone will soon support fast 3Gbps cellular data connections.

To use the 5G SA service after updating to iOS 16.4, you need to visit the “Voice & Data”section in Cellular Settings and turn on the “5G Standalone”option.

How a standalone 5G network works

“5G Standalone uses 5G for all cellular operations, including connections to cellular networks,” Apple notes in the feature description. “Under certain conditions, standalone 5G may be used when needed to provide cellular service.”

T-Mobile announced its 5G SA network in November 2022 in a press release , which stated that the service was available to Samsung Galaxy S22 customers at launch, with an expansion “to additional devices in the near future”.

5G SA uses carrier aggregation, which combines multiple 5G medium frequency channels to boost speeds as fast as or even faster than 5G mmWave. Support for Apple 5G SA will make it easier for developers to deploy standalone 5G networks in apps.

5G support in Turkey and Macau

In addition to supporting offline 5G network, iOS 16.4 also allows iPhone owners in Turkey to connect to local 5G networks in the country. According to social media posts, iOS 16.4 brings 5G support to other regions such as Macau.

GoogleFi 5G support

Installing iOS 16.4 beta also makes Google Fi visible to subscribers. As 9to5Google explains, the Voice & Data section of the Settings app now shows 5G On and 5G Auto options for Google Fi subscribers.

The Google Fi compatibility page notes that Fi for iOS is in beta and says “5G data is not supported on the iPhone,”but that looks set to change when iOS 16.4 is released to the public. Apple may also drop support for Google Fi 5G from stable iOS 16.4. Read: How to Fix iPhone Cellular Data Not Working

When will Apple release iOS 16.4?

On February 16, 2023, Apple released the first betas of iOS 16.4, iPadOS 16.4, macOS Ventura 13.3, watchOS 9.4, and tvOS 16.4 for developer testing, with public betas expected next week.

Updates will continue to be tested over the next few weeks before they are ready for prime time. We expect software updates to be available to all users around April.

You will install updates over the air using the software update feature, which will update you to the latest software version without deleting any data or settings.