What is 5G and what can it do for you?
5G is the next great “Genie out of the Lamp” in the wireless network industry. It is very robust and capable of delivering many technologies simultaneously over various devices. (Computers, tablets, PDA’s, 5G enabled smart phones, VR and game consoles, teleconference stations, etc.) 5G will “marry” many recent technological advances under one communications network. Both business and end-users will experience faster loading and more agile use of applications and programs on all their deices.
5G differs from the 4G LTE (*) or WiMAX (**) applications. It operates on 3 radio-wave spectrums:
Low (under 1 Gigahertz, -T-Mobile) Medium (1 to 20 GHz, – Sprint) High (Over 20 GHz – Verizon).
- The Low Band Spectrum travels greater distances (200-mile radius) and can penetrate buildings with improved latency over 4G (time needed for devices to talk to each other).
- The Medium Band Spectrum allows for even lower Latency and higher speed. It relies on other technologies to penetrate buildings
- The High band has lower latency and the highest speeds (10Ggbps) but it has lesser power and extremely small area of coverage per tower site, requiring a much greater number of transmitters. It will not penetrate buildings.
Wireless providers will quickly learn to operate on a blend of these radio spectrums.
The Wireless Industry has now evolved through 5 generations of network innovation in just a short span of 37 years.
- 1G was introduced to the US in 1984 by NTT (Nippon Telephone and Telegraph),
- 2G made its debut in 1994,
- 3G in 2001,
- 4G in 2009 with various upgrades over the last decade.
- 5G officially deploys in March 2020.
5G benefits vs 4G
- Significantly faster peak data rates 20 Gbps download 10 Gbps upload (Gigabytes per second).
- Internet User speeds 100 Mbps download and 50 Mbps upload. (Megabytes per second)
- Latency (time needed for devices to talk to each other) 4G = 100 milliseconds. 5G = 1 – 4 Milliseconds. The difference allows 5G devices to seemingly respond in real time!
- Greatly improves device and network efficiencies and lowers energy usage.
- Lower transmission errors (called “packet loss”).
- Highly effective motion / mobility transmissions. (transmissions are stable over 300 mph, such as on a high-speed train.)
- High density of connected devices. (Over 1 million devices can connect simultaneously within ½ square mile.
Uses:
- Autonomous vehicles will communicate / interact with main control system and each other in near-real time. The human brain sends information across its synapses at 200 milliseconds. Average human response time to an anticipated event (hand-slapping game) is 1.5 seconds. Behind the wheel of a car, 2-3 seconds. Autonomous systems will communicate and respond within 1-4 milliseconds, thus delivering extremely safer operation at closer distances and at much higher traveling speeds.
- Improved Public Safety and infrastructure response times, decreasing maintenance and alert intervals.
- Remote device and heavy machinery control in near-real time. Remote technicians with specialized skills can interact with robotics from anywhere on the globe.
- More reliable remote healthcare operations, surgeries and consultations via video and machine control functions.
- IoT (Internet of Things – Remote control of anything). 4G is being overwhelmed with the monitoring and controlling of remote devices. The robust capacity of 5G will greatly enhance and improve the IoT industry.
Watch this video: https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/what-is-5g/ (Video will play after a brief Verizon ad)
Ref: Bainbridge news, digitaltrends.com/
(*) LTE defined: “Long Term Evolution Standard” which was the new application basis for 4G wireless. Compared to 3G, it was designed to operate on an average frequency of 900 MHz, to allow 1Gbps speeds, improved mobile voice quality, and much higher data transmissions.
(**) WiMAX defined: “Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access.” WiMAX was designed to mirror the OSI platform levels of wireline internet and data usage. (IEEE 802.16) It is widely used outside the USA. Sprint has deployed most of WiMAX sites inside USA.
Article by: Bill Quaglia, In The Cloud Technology. All rights reserved. Copy by permission only
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