What is 5G?
Like every "next generation" wireless network technology, 5G will give your phone a speedier connection -- about 10 times faster than 4G, industry experts expect. That's enough to stream "8K" video or download a 3D movie in 30 seconds. (On 4G, it would take six minutes.)
The extra capacity will make service more reliable, allowing more gadgets to connect to the network at the same time.
But 5G is about much more than smartphones. Sensors, thermostats, cars, robots, and other new technology will all connect to 5G one day. Today's 4G networks don't have the bandwidth for the vast amounts of data all those devices will transmit.
5G networks will also reduce to virtually zero the lag time between devices and the servers they communicate with. For driverless cars, that means uninterrupted communication between a car and other vehicles, data centers and outside sensors.
To accomplish all that, 5G will need to travel over super-high-frequency airwaves. Higher frequencies bring faster speeds and more bandwidth. But they can't travel through walls, windows or rooftops, and they get considerably weaker over long distances.
That means wireless companies will need to install thousands -- perhaps millions -- of miniature cell towers on top of every lamp post, on the side of buildings, inside every home and potentially in every room.
That's why 5G will complement 4G rather than outright replace it. In buildings and in crowded areas, 5G might provide a speed boost. But when you're driving down the highway, 4G could be your only option -- at least for a while.
The extra capacity will make service more reliable, allowing more gadgets to connect to the network at the same time.
But 5G is about much more than smartphones. Sensors, thermostats, cars, robots, and other new technology will all connect to 5G one day. Today's 4G networks don't have the bandwidth for the vast amounts of data all those devices will transmit.
5G networks will also reduce to virtually zero the lag time between devices and the servers they communicate with. For driverless cars, that means uninterrupted communication between a car and other vehicles, data centers and outside sensors.
To accomplish all that, 5G will need to travel over super-high-frequency airwaves. Higher frequencies bring faster speeds and more bandwidth. But they can't travel through walls, windows or rooftops, and they get considerably weaker over long distances.
That means wireless companies will need to install thousands -- perhaps millions -- of miniature cell towers on top of every lamp post, on the side of buildings, inside every home and potentially in every room.
That's why 5G will complement 4G rather than outright replace it. In buildings and in crowded areas, 5G might provide a speed boost. But when you're driving down the highway, 4G could be your only option -- at least for a while.
Link Text