5 things we know about 5G
5 things we know about 5G
Published in Gadgets
Is it just like 4G, only faster? Short answer: no. Newstac gathers more from a reliable source what people have been saying about the potential of this nascent technology

5G doesn’t exist yet. According to Jo Best of Tech Republic, it will be “months, likely years” before the standard is properly defined. She likens it to trying to predict the impact of the iPhone five years before it was launched. “No one foresaw its arrival, or how the market would change in response to it, and how we’d end up where we are now,” she wrote. “We're facing the same situation again: trying [to] imagine how the mobile world will look 10 years from now and design a standard to fit it.”

That hasn’t stopped people from speculating, of course, or governments and companies from investing billions of dollars in its development. Here’s a snapshot of what’s going on.

1. 5G will offer more than speed

4G is faster than 3G, and 5G will be faster than 4G – but there’s more to it than that.

"5G will be a dramatic overhaul and harmonization of the radio spectrum," Professor Rahim Tafazolli, head of the UK's government-funded 5G Innovation Center at the University of Surrey, told the BBC. The current radiofrequency spectrum is a bit of a patchwork, with new technologies being slotted into unoccupied spaces. But the International Telecommunication Union is “comprehensively restructuring the part of the radio network used to transmit data.”

Through more efficient use of the spectrum, 5G should free up space for the ever-growing number of users and connected devices, allowing us to realize the full potential of the Internet of Things.

But yes, it will be fast. Tafazolli believes that people with access to a 5G network will see data speeds of up to 800Gbps – fast enough to download 33 high-definition films in one second flat.

2. It will allow more personalized connected technology

The greater capacity of 5G networks will bring greater flexibility and opportunities for customization. As Susan Kalla wrote for Forbes: “New 5G networks will have far greater capacity, and are designed to work with lots of devices. The network will fetch the TV format that matches your screen size, whether it’s a phone, PC or large screen. New signaling systems will redirect calls to the users’ preferred devices based on preferences. Want to talk privately on your phone while you are in your car? The network will route voice calls to your phone. Want passengers to see a traffic map? Presto! The map appears on the dashboard. The 5G network will learn your preferences and route calls and videos however you want them.”

3. It should be here by 2020

The industry is working toward a 2020 rollout for the first networks built on the 5G standard.

The date wasn’t plucked out of thin air. “Several delegates have pointed out that South Korea and Japan are keen to have 5G networks up and running in some form by the time each country hosts Olympic games in 2018 and 2020, respectively,” wrote Joanne Taaffe for Light Reading. “Certainly South Korea, which is investing US$1.5 billion in 5G development, is taking 5G rollout very seriously.”

In a speech in January, Günther Oettinger of the European Commission noted that the EU had set aside a budget of €700m for the 5G public-private partnership, as part of the Vision 2020 program. “My own view is that 5G PPP is the boldest step that Europe has taken towards building the telecommunications infrastructure of the next decade,” he said.

4. Adoption of 5G might be slower than 4G

Research body ABI has predicted that it will take more than five years for a 5G network standard to reach 100 million subscribers. It only took 4G three years, as it was “fueled by the capabilities of increasingly powerful smartphones and the availability of 4G devices.” ABI believes the US will have the largest number of 5G subscribers in 2025, followed by China, Japan, South Korea and the UK.

5. Everyone wants to be the first

Competition among countries to launch 5G ahead of the others is fierce, and South Korea seems to be edging ahead – for now. It was one of the first to roll out 4G, and it has now committed US$1.5 billion to ensuring that its telecom companies will launch 5G by 2020. One of its mobile giants, LG, and its Finnish counterpart, Nokia, recently announced they were working together on developing 5G in South Korea.

Samsung, another South Korean tech giant, announced late in 2014 that it had smashed the global 5G speed record when it “topped 7.5Gbps while stationary on a 5G network as well as 1.2Gbps while in a vehicle travelling at more than 100kmph,”wrote Liam Tung for ZDNet.

Other countries aren’t far behind. The UK has its 5GIC, part funded by Huawei, Samsung and the BBC; the European Union has its Metis consortium, which aims to “lay the foundation of 5G”; and Swedish network giant Ericsson claimed a slightly slower 5G speed record in July 2014.

But as Oettinger said in his speech, “Let's not lose sight of worldwide interoperability. If a stable ‘vision’ for 5G could be achieved at a global level, it would be of huge long-term benefit to … citizens across the EU.”

The bottom line is there are a lot of unknowns – but one thing we do know is that you might want to start saving now for the 5G-ready smartphone you’ll need around 2020.

Newstac.com is a tech-based site that is dedicated to bringing you the latest technology news and updates around the globe with its exciting features and categories to choose from. Visit us at www.newstac.com