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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesSemiconductor chips let connected devices send and receive wireless information, and let telecom equipment carry that information onward through the network. In a 5G connection, radio circuitry handles the wireless signal, baseband processing encodes or decodes information, and radio access network equipment links the device to the core network. These are different jobs performed across a system—not one chip powering an entire network.
Where chips fit in a mobile connection
A mobile connection is a chain of devices and network equipment. At one end is a phone or another wireless device. It communicates over radio with nearby access equipment, such as a macro base station or a small cell. That radio access network (RAN) connects mobile users and wireless devices to the network’s core, where services and wider network functions are reached.
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The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) EMF Guide, version 1.1, describes the RAN as facilities including small cells, towers, masts, and dedicated in-building and home systems that connect users and devices to the main core network. In other words, a tower is one visible part of a larger access system; it is not the whole telecom network. The guide’s publication year is not established here.
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How information travels from a device to the network
1. The device prepares information for wireless communication
A phone starts with information it needs to send, such as data for a network service. Baseband processing handles encoding for outgoing information and decoding for incoming signals. The radio circuitry handles transmission and reception over the wireless link. These are complementary functions: baseband processing works with the information being communicated, while radio circuitry handles the radio transmission or reception itself.
A GSMA-hosted Omdia paper from 2020 describes 5G terminals as using digital chips for radio transmission and reception and baseband chips for encoding and decoding. The paper’s PDF was not accessible for inspection, so this is best treated as a supported functional distinction, not a complete account of 5G phone architecture. It does not establish that every phone uses the same chip arrangement or that each function always resides in a separate chip.
2. Radio access equipment provides the wireless link
The phone’s radio communicates with nearby access equipment. Depending on the location and network design, that equipment may be a wide-area macro base station or a smaller cell serving a more localized area. These access points form part of the RAN: they connect wireless endpoints to the rest of the network.
Radio equipment at a base station must participate in the wireless link, while other processing and network functions support the connection beyond that link. The exact distribution of work is not universal. Some functions can be placed at a site; in other designs, RAN functions can be centralized or virtualized. A functional description is therefore more reliable than assuming a particular list of boards or chips at every site.
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3. The connection moves beyond radio access
Once traffic has crossed the radio access link, network equipment carries it toward the core and the relevant service. In some 5G architectures, edge computing is placed closer to users, and IoT devices or concentrators may connect through the access network. Those are deployment possibilities, not requirements for every connection. The core, access equipment, and any edge resources have system-level roles that go beyond the radio and baseband functions described for a terminal.
This distinction matters when asking what a chip “does” in a tower or phone. A chip can carry out a specialized part of signal handling or processing, but the connection depends on multiple components and network functions working together. Chip-level functions should not be confused with the overall job of routing, delivering, and operating telecom services.
Radio, baseband, and network processing are different jobs
| Functional area | What it does | Where it fits |
|---|---|---|
| Radio transmission and reception | Handles sending or receiving wireless radio signals. | In a connected device and in radio access equipment involved in the wireless link. |
| Baseband processing | Encodes outgoing information and decodes incoming signals. | Described for 5G terminals in a 2020 GSMA-hosted Omdia paper search extract; device implementations can vary. |
| RAN and broader network processing | Supports access to the network and processing beyond the endpoint’s radio functions. Functions may be distributed or centralized. | Across access equipment and other network resources, depending on the deployment. |
The table is a functional map, not a bill of materials. It does not specify how many chips a device or base station contains, their performance, or which exact functions a particular product combines. The available Omdia evidence supports the radio/baseband distinction at a high level; it does not justify more detailed claims about internal chip architecture.
Why networks use both macro base stations and small cells
Macro base stations and small cells address different coverage and deployment needs. ITU’s 5G material describes macro stations as a way to provide broader coverage, while small cells can serve localized traffic, help address coverage gaps, and support some higher-frequency deployments. Small cells complement macro coverage; they do not replace it wholesale.
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| Deployment type | Typical role | What to consider |
|---|---|---|
| Macro base station | Provides a wider-area access layer. | Coverage footprint, location, backhaul and processing placement, and power and reliability requirements. |
| Small cell | Serves a more localized area, such as a hotspot or a coverage gap. | Local traffic needs, placement, frequency, backhaul and processing placement, and power and reliability requirements. |
Neither category alone describes every 5G deployment. The appropriate mix depends on the coverage and capacity needs of a place and on the way the network is designed. Higher-frequency use can be one reason to deploy localized cells, but it does not follow that every higher-frequency service requires one fixed cell density or layout.
The distinction also helps explain why more connected equipment does not mean that every user needs a separate tower. The RAN may include macro sites, small cells, and in-building or home systems. These facilities collectively provide access over different footprints and locations.
Where RAN processing can be placed
RAN functions do not have to be arranged in one identical way at every site. ITU material distinguishes distributed RAN, where RAN processing is performed at the site, from cloud RAN, where some or all RAN functions are centralized. In cloud RAN, pooled hardware and virtualization through general-purpose processors can be used to implement those functions.
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Edge computing is another possible part of a 5G deployment. It can place computing closer to users, but it is not synonymous with a base station, a chip, or cloud RAN. The useful question is where a particular function is performed in a given network, rather than assuming all processing happens in the phone, at the tower, or in a distant central facility.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Power, availability, and reliability are network design concerns
Radio access equipment needs a power system, and network planning must account for service availability, backup, safety, and environmental conditions. ITU-T Recommendation L.1210, published in December 2025, addresses power-feeding for 5G and converged wireless and wireline access networks. Its scope includes power structures, backup, safety, availability, and environmental conditions.
L.1210 also identifies a system-level challenge: increasing radio-cell density and adding network equipment closer to users create demands for power-system design. This is one reason a deployment decision cannot be evaluated only by asking how a chip works. The network equipment around it must also be powered and kept available under the conditions for which the system is designed.
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What this means for phones and other connected devices
A 5G smartphone is a familiar example of a connected device using mobile radio, but the same broad explanation applies to wireless endpoints more generally. The device needs radio functions to communicate with access equipment and baseband processing to encode or decode information. It then relies on the RAN and the rest of the network to reach services.
For IoT devices, the endpoint may communicate through a concentrator or connect through network arrangements suited to the deployment. The ITU’s 5G material identifies IoT devices and concentrators among possible elements in the network setting. It does not establish one standard chip design or connection path for all IoT products, so their specific capabilities depend on the device and network implementation.
When evaluating a claim about a connected device, ask what function is being described. “Radio chip” points to transmission or reception; “baseband” points to encoding or decoding; a claim about network coverage or service delivery involves access equipment and wider network functions as well. Keeping those levels separate makes it easier to understand what a chip contributes without attributing the whole connection to one component.
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What the available evidence does—and does not—establish
- ITU material establishes the role of the RAN in connecting wireless users and devices to the core network, and describes macro stations, small cells, and other access facilities.
- The GSMA-hosted Omdia paper’s 2020 search extract supports a high-level distinction between digital chips for radio transmission and reception and baseband chips for encoding and decoding. Because its PDF could not be inspected, it is not a basis for detailed architecture claims.
- ITU-T L.1210 (12/2025) and L.1390 (08/2022) address power and energy considerations for network equipment, not chip-level consumption figures.
- The evidence does not establish a named device’s internal design, a universal allocation of processing functions, or a quantitative comparison of chip performance or power.
The safe mental model is a chain of specialized functions: the endpoint prepares and handles information, radio circuitry communicates over the air, access equipment links the device to the network, and network resources carry processing and service delivery onward. Chips make these functions possible inside the equipment, while the complete connection is a system-level achievement.
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