With the term 5GE being thrown around while 5G is still emerging, it’s more important than ever to understand exactly what it means and how the two differ.

5GE stands for 5G Evolution. It’s a label that AT&T puts on some phones that simply means it’s connected to their 5G Evolution network. If you have one device with 5G on the top and another one next to it with 5GE, they’re not on the same network, even if they’re in the same location and both using AT&T’s network.

5G Evolution may sound like a form of 5G, perhaps even an improvement on it. But the reality is that it’s just a name AT&T uses to describe 4G LTE-A.

AT&T started using the term in late 2018. When the 5G conversation started around that time, it was supposed to differentiate them from other companies like Verizon and T-Mobile by making their users feel like they were on a brand new 5G network. But all this did was confuse people and make them think they had somehow upgraded to the new network without buying a 5G phone, without making any changes to their account, and without paying for the new service.