The iPhone 12 supports Personal Hotspot tethering over 5GHz Wi-Fi, reports MacRumors, citing staff member and iOS developer Steve Moser, and YouTuber Aaron Zollo.
Although older iPhone models can connect to both 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands, they broadcast Wi-Fi over the 2.4Ghz frequency only.
5GHz frequencies offer faster speeds, but they offer less coverage. A 2.4GHz connection, on the other hand, offers coverage at a longer range but it is comparatively slower. That said, chances are that your phone will be close to the device you want to connect to, and so 5GHz’s range limitation shouldn’t really be an issue at most times.
I confirmed the new Maximize compatibility setting on iPhone 12 switches the hotspot from 5ghz to 2.4ghz. Which matters when using 5G where the speeds can go above the 2.4ghz spec. pic.twitter.com/uzvPyD5lFe
— Aaron Zollo (@zollotech) October 22, 2020
Not to sound like a broken record, but the iPhone 12 series is 5G-ready. The US-bound variants also support the faster mmWave networks, so support for 5GHz hotspot sharing is definitely welcome news. Exact speed improvements are yet to be determined.
