The future of “5G” is the talk of the network. Despite its relatively undefined status, this next-generation network technology is one that many other emerging technologies are pinning their hopes on due to the capabilities beyond what the current 4G network can offer. In addition to the usual improvement in bandwidth and cost per bit, 5G is also expected to provide much lower latency and support power efficient low-bandwidth communication for the “Internet of Things.” While its promise presents many opportunities for both consumers and businesses, there is still work to be done as the mobile industry and global regulators define the standards that will set the pace for the deployment and daily usage of 5G.
But for now, we’re left with rampant speculation about what 5G might be able to do, how it might enable new business models and what other new technologies it might support. Each of these will leverage the network in a new and different way and bring with them their own unique technology challenges that the industry must overcome before 5G can reach its full potential.
Low latency and the self-driving car
Self-driving cars are one of the new technologies that 5G might support. In order for the vision of the self-driving car to be fully realized, cars must be able to speak to each other as well as the environment around them with near-instantaneous speed. Otherwise, they will not be able to send and receive information in time to make decisions and avoid obstacles to keep passengers safe.
Today’s network cannot provide those sorts of speeds, which is why the auto industry is keeping a close watch on the development of 5G. Researchers are working hard to bring down the latency of the network in order to enable that near-instantaneous communication. According to Huawei, today’s 4G network has an average latency of about 50 milliseconds – enough time for a car going just over 60 mph to travel 1.4 meters or close to five feet. At that point, our theoretical autonomous vehicle has run an unexpected stop sign, struck a pedestrian or rear-ended another vehicle. Contrast that with the 1 millisecond of latency 5G is expected to achieve, during which time that same car would travel 2.8 centimeters or just over 1 inch.
Power efficiency and IoT
Speed isn’t always everything. The IoT is another emerging application that has its eyes firmly fixed on 5G as a possible key to mainstream success. The IoT will create millions – or even billions – of connected devices. Each individual device will need to communicate, either with other devices or with the cloud, in order for the IoT to be both useful and value-additive.
With a network optimized for power efficiency instead of speed, these connected devices could do exactly that – communicate a lot of information at regular intervals without consuming a lot of energy. This would extend battery life for these devices by years, making it easier for consumers and enterprises alike to use them.
Bandwidth and multimedia content
Finally, multimedia content is becoming increasingly important and increasingly problematic. Video and other multimedia content has become a great way to share information quickly and easily, but clogs the network with high bandwidth demands. With 4K video generating interest and attention that trend is unlikely to subside.
A 5G network optimized for high bandwidth communications could provide the quality network needed to support these new, multimedia ways of communicating. It could allow for instant, high-definition replay at a sporting event on not just your mobile device, but the mobile devices of everyone in the stadium. It could allow for more virtual reality applications, as high-resolution images are used to give step-by-step assembly instructions within a factory – or even in your living room as you struggle to assemble a new piece of furniture or toy for a kid.
The bottom line is that 5G has the potential to be all of these things, but at the end of the day, it cannot be all of these things at once. Which applications it can ultimately support will depend on much of the work being done at both the standards and technology levels over the coming months and years.
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