We are still discovering how 5G will transform our lives. With unprecedented speeds and decreased latency, society will benefit from innovative connected experiences, the Internet of things, and the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
While many have the luxury of reacting to 5G, communications service providers (CSPs) must proactively plan for the implications of 5G on their testing operations.
So, how does 5G impact CSP service verification?
1. Increased Test Loads
The number of connected devices is expected to grow 100 times from 4G to 5G due to the Internet of things and increased connectivity opportunities.
There’s also an increase in network elements that need functional testing. For instance, massive MIMO is one of the foundations of 5G’s increased data speeds and requires large arrays of antennae working in tandem.
And an additional network operating in parallel to existing infrastructure means an increased number of handover and fallback scenarios requiring verification.
These are minor considerations by themselves, but they add up to volume and complexity.
2. Emphasis on Flagship Devices
For the first time in years, mobile devices are being designed with different antennae and other elements for connecting to 5G networks.
Testers will be tempted to root or jailbreak devices to control test environments. But with 5G’s sub-millisecond latency times, the difference between a rooted device and the real thing can present a real risk to test results.
Integrating new devices into the test environment without hacking them is more crucial than ever.
3. Re-Imagining Speed Tests
Measuring latency, jitter, packet loss, download, and upload speeds in a 5G environment is a game of inches… or rather, a game of milliseconds.
Manual testing becomes impractical. It will be increasingly necessary to have automated tests that perform the same actions the same way every time.
4. Over-the-Air Testing
Because of low latency times, we expect to reach a point when wireless 5G connectivity is faster than a wired connection. Over-the-air testing will become more commonplace, and devices will be tested without a wired connection as testers ascertain beam tracking information and other 5G-specific data.
5. The Rise of Hyper-Automation
Advanced automated testing solutions can verify a comprehensive test surface Beyond End2End® when integrated with agile CI/CD environments, network management systems (NWS), and AI-driven technology.
By executing thousands of test cases per day, continuous monitoring assures flawless reliability. Insightful reporting and test logs must facilitate rapid troubleshooting, pointing engineers to the root cause in record time.
Future-Proof Your Test Bench with SEGRON
SEGRON is a market leader with 5G-ready active testing solutions.
SEGRON’s Automated Testing Framework (ATF) is a turnkey solution for testing digital services on any device in any location. Continuous network testing accelerates time-to-market and assures reliable connectivity.
Testing new and pre-released devices is a snap with SEGRON’s intelligent Device Automation (iDA). The iDA allows testers to integrate new devices and operating systems into the testing framework within minutes. Schedule a demo to see how SEGRON can future-proof your testing operations.
