Today, mobile communication is not just phone calls and texting. You have probably heard about G3, G4 and 5G is already in the public eye. “G” means generation, therefore, 5G stands for the fifth generation of mobile telephony. Its main advantage is that the data transfer rate is bigger than it was before. Are modern speed indicators not enough, some might ask? Why increase the data signaling rate?
Everything depends upon a challenge to meet. For a basic user, the speed increase is the ability to download a movie in full high definition in just a few seconds or play in a computer-generated environment without hindrance.
The Internet of Things (IoT) needs 5G for full functioning. This technology will make it possible to connect tens of millions of devices to the net. Those are unmanned vehicles and even smart electric kettles.
It provides features for new technologies in different sectors of the economy. It is about making the productivity of robots in enterprises bigger and remote viewing of agricultural machinery.
You need a smartphone, which supports 5G to get connected. Some phone manufacturers are already producing such smartphones. However, going from one to the next generation is going to continue for several years. And for now, 5G communication is in its developmental phase and something is going to change inevitably.
It will increase the shadow of what happens next not speaking about the telecommunications industry but also medicine, making it possible for surgical operations to be performed in real-time mode; transport, home, and entertainment.
People will be able to download full-length movies with the help of 5G in a few years. The data transfer rate is going to be almost instant, which will make it to avoiding car accidents by autonomous cars on the roads. As some automobile experts say, the success of autonomous cars will depend on 5G. Besides that, these networks will help to change the power balance in the telecommunication industry reducing the need for wired Internet.
Due to 5G, many more devices can simultaneously connect to cellular towers, contributing to the evolution of the IoT.
Carmakers will be capable of integrating chips into any elements of their cars, and engineers will be able to find out what is there to fix or replace. Farmers will know if an animal needs any treatment through putting a sensor on, or if a plant needs some watering. Some scientists even consider the idea of distance surgery using robots.
Connecting such household appliances as refrigerators and washing machines to the Internet will make it people know if they require any maintenance. Joggers will be able to connect their running shoes to analyze how fast and how far they run. Implants to diagnose if there are any cardiovascular diseases will send information to doctors as automatic messages.
Some of these technologies are already available on 4G, although devices usually need to be connected to WiFi or smartphones. The advent of 5G will allow them to always be connected to the Internet, while not slowing down the transmission of data on the network.
However, there are skeptics who doubt the importance of 5G. For example, autonomous cars cannot rely on cell signals in the tunnels when the weather is bad. High humidity or rain can get the 5G signal worse than 4G. Therefore, for autonomous cars, their own computers will be of more help than mobile networks.
As for virtual reality helmets and robots for remote surgery, they will most likely still connect to WiFi, and the wired Internet will be faster than 5G.
Some specialists say that the main thing is not which country is going to have 5G first but which companies the most important patents will belong to.
Moreover, patent holders can benefit more from 5G than from previous generation networks. For instance, Japan did not take proper advantage of its leadership in the deployment of 3G networks, as the music and social services created by its companies were oriented to the domestic market. Or, let us take Huawei, which turned from a company working on the Chinese market mostly into the largest producer of mobile network equipment and second-largest smartphone producers in the world.
According to a study conducted by the American telecommunications association CTIA, China, South Korea, and the United States lead the development of 5G.
