5G connectivity depends on several factors, so before wasting a bunch of time trying to connect to 5G, make sure that all the following criterias are met.
-
The modem variant has to match the carrier you’re using in your country (ex. RM500Q-AE for NSA bands in the US / RM500Q-GL for SA/NSA bands in most other countries).
RM500Q-GL 5G-NR Behaviour -
While carriers might offer 5G, it’s not always available on all their plans. Check with them to make sure that your plan includes 5G access at no additional cost or might have to pay extra for it. In fact AT+QENG=“Servingcell” could be showing 5G connectivity, yet the carrier/plan won’t actually allow an active data channel.
-
In 5G NSA mode, the modem normally idles in LTE mode, and will only connect to 5G during large data transfers controlled exclusively by the carrier’s tower.