There’s this new thing called 5G. And let me tell you about it.
That was a joke. At least the first part.
I know that you’re probably already well aware of the up-and-coming technology known as 5G. But I’m still going to tell you about. And there may even be a few things here that are new to you.
Here we go!
5G is a cellular technology. The 3GPP is setting standards for it. And the first 5G-compliant commercially available equipment and services are expected to be out this year.
This technology follows up on 2G, 3G, and 4G technology. (It’s true!)
And it’s faster than all of them. In fact, 5G promises bandwidth rates on par with fiber. That’s why service providers like AT&T (News - Alert) and Verizon here in the U.S. are planning to use 5G for both fixed and mobile implementations.
But it’s not just speed that sets 5G apart from the cellular technologies that came before it. It’s also that 5G can support ultra-low latency connections.
That’s pretty cool. Because as a result cellular networks will be able to support super latency-sensitive applications like connected car and robotic surgery.
When a driverless car going 75mph on the highway, and you’re sitting in the backseat, you don’t want any delay as the car’s sensors ping the other vehicles and objects around it to make sure it doesn’t get too close. And when you have surgery in the future and a remotely-controlled robot is involved, you don’t want the network to introduce delay into the procedure. No, that would not be good.
So that’s all pretty cool, right? Right.
Well, so is the fact that 5G can handle lots and lots of connections, can use network slicing to support multiple application groups on each of those connections, and is more spectrally efficient than the cellular technologies that preceded it.
But hold up. There are at least a few downsides to 5G too.
One is that it operates on high frequencies, so it will require more radios. And more radios means more orchestration among those network elements. So that’s a little different, and will probably add complexity and cost.
Also, it’s likely we’ll see greater security threats following the introduction of 5G. It’s not that there are any unique security concerns or gaps with 5G. It’s just that 5G will be able to support a greater array of applications, and the more apps and devices you put on the network, the larger your threat surface.
In this article, Alan Patterson, a consultant at FarrPoint, makes another interesting point about the potential effect of 5G.
He says that 5G will be rolled out over time. It will likely come first to densely populated areas, which are typically most in need of added capacity. And that, he says, could serve to broaden the digital divide.
Edited by
Mandi Nowitz
