5G Facts: What You Need To Know About 5G Wireless Technology
5G marks the fifth technological revolution set to change the world of the Internet.
This latest wave will multiply the speed and capacity of the network up to unimaginable levels that will enhance the development of not only a digital society,
but also all the technologies that comprise it, such as artificial intelligence and big data.
This technology is far more complex than it seems and, to understand it better, here are some interesting facts about 5G technology.
The 5G Wireless Basics
There is an official acronym for 5G: Low Power Wide Area Network.
5G is not one technology but the unification of four existing technologies: 4G, 3G, 2G, and 1G.
According to CISA “5G promises an array of enhancements, providing higher data rates (extremely fast download speeds), ultra-low latency (near real-time interactivity), and increased network capacity (allowing for the connectivity of many more devices at once).
These are the main characteristics of a 5G network:
Reaching a theoretical peak speed of 20 Gbps
Having a far greater coverage with far lower latency and more efficient performance than 4G.
- 100x Faster Download Speeds than current 4G networks
- 10x Decrease in Latency
- 100x Network Capacity”
Download the 5G Basics infographic By CISA
5G-Self Driving Cars
5G-powered autonomous vehicles will be very futuristic and increase road safety.
According to digi.com, The next generation of connected vehicles are going to do so much more.
5G cars will connect to 5G networks, which will not only enable ultra-fast, low-latency communications.
It will also allow them to communicate with each other.
For example, two 5G connected cars coming to a stop sign can agree in advance who will go through first, solving the problem that under current technology, self-driving cars tend to perform poorly at stop signs.
The 5G Telecom infrastructure
The recent launch of the first 4G networks coincided with the advent of the second wave of mobile network operators that have already embarked on the 5G project.
The equipment for the 5G networks will be installed into the existing infrastructure to allow for seamless interoperability and to avoid the obsolescence issues that plagued 4G.
5G does not need Wi-Fi towers at all. It is an all-digital network, which means that there are no wires, signaling, or backhaul components.
As mentioned in 5Gradar Operators will use a combination of low, mid and high range spectrum to support different 5G use cases. Some applications will require high bandwidth and constant connectivity, enabled by millimeter Wave (mmWave) frequencies that offer great speeds and capacity.
However this is tempered by low range and poor propagation qualities.
This Huawei AAU is used to deliver 5G services by Vodafone in the UK. (Image credit: Future)
5G and the Internet of Things
5G is about using multiple radio frequency frequencies to send and receive data at very high speeds. It is the next-generation wireless network technology and one of the most talked-about in recent years.
5G will be different from all the others in that it focuses primarily on improving data transmission speed.
In other words, it is about faster data transmission, as opposed to the broadband capabilities of the previous networks.
5G is Faster data transfer According to a report from the Global Mobile Broadband Alliance (GMBA), the average connection speed in the U.S. currently stands at around 3.8 Mbps.
5G and Artificial Intelligence
5G networks will be able to deliver ultrafast speed and extremely low latency which will enable the performance of AI algorithms with near real-time and better quality.
This makes it possible for AI to make use of all that information to perform their operations more efficiently.
Because of this, the 5G network needs to follow the 5G architecture, which is already in place. In this system, the user equipment (the other devices that connect to the network) are separated into active and passive networks.
5G and Big Data
This is something that makes 5G all the more useful. For instance, the extra capacity makes it possible to store more data per cell.
In fact, according to Verizon’s VP of Network Planning David L. Cohen, as quoted by Tech Crunch, the company is focusing on offering higher peak speeds, as they will enable businesses to transport data over a much more stable network.
Also, the capacity of 5G will enable fast data transfer from one area to another, which will be an immense help in everything from developing data-intensive virtual reality and augmented reality (VR/AR) apps to performing real-time calculations on large datasets.
Conclusion
Over time 5G technologies will improve and adapt to the needs of a changing society.
There are many exciting possibilities for 5G such as faster speeds on mobile networks and new services like remote surgery or driverless cars being developed over the next few years.
Furthermore, it’s expected that by 2026 over half of all people on earth will use this type of technology for their daily lives.
