What is 5G? How is it better than 4G?

5G networks will increase wireless throughput tenfold and replace wired broadband. But when will they be available, and why are 5G and the Internet of Things so closely linked?

5G Wireless is a broad term used to describe a range of faster wireless Internet standards and technologies, theoretically 20 times faster than 4G and 120 times less latency, laying the foundation for the development of the Internet of Things and support for new high-bandwidth applications.

What is 5G? Technology or buzzword?

It will take years for the technology to reach its full potential worldwide, but in the meantime some 5G services are already in use. 5G is not only a technical term, but also a marketing one, and not all 5G services on the market are standard.

[From Mobile World Congress: 5G is coming]

5G versus 4G speeds

With each generation of wireless technology, the biggest call is for increased speed. The potential peak download speeds on 5G networks can reach 20 Gbps, and typically around 10 Gbps. This is not only faster than current 4G networks, which peak at around 1 Gbps, but also faster than wired connections in more homes. 5G offers network speeds that rival those of fiber optics.

Throughput is not the only speed boost for 5G; It also has the feature of greatly reducing network latency. This is an important distinction: throughput measures how long it takes to download a large file, while latency is determined by network bottlenecks, which slow down response times in round-trip communications.

Latency is difficult to quantify because it varies with various network states, but 5G networks are ideally capable of keeping latency rates within 1 ms. Overall, 5G latency will be 60 to 120 times lower than 4G. This makes many applications possible, such as the current delays in virtual reality that make it impractical.

5 g technology

There are a number of standard definitions on which 5G technology is based, and better parts have been worked on for the past 10 years. The most important of these is 5G New Radio (5G NR), which is being standardised by 3GPP, a standardisation body that develops protocols for mobile phones. The 5G NR, which regulates the way many 5G devices operate, was finalized in July 2018.

Many unique technologies are coming together to maximize 5G speeds and reduce latency, and here are some of the most important ones.

Millimeter wave

5G networks mostly use frequencies in the 30 to 300 GHz range. (As the name suggests, these frequencies have wavelengths between 1 and 10 millimeters.) These high-frequency ranges are capable of carrying more information per unit of time than low-frequency signals, which 4G LTE currently uses at frequencies typically below 1 GHz, or WiFi up to 6 GHz.

Millimeter-wave technology has traditionally been expensive and difficult to deploy. Technological advances have overcome these difficulties, which is why 5G is now possible.

Small cellular

One drawback of millimeter-wave transmissions is that they are more easily interfered with than 4G or WiFi signals when transmitted through physical objects.

To overcome this, 5G infrastructure will be modelled differently from 4G. Instead of large, landscape-like mobile masts, 5G networks will be supported by smaller base stations scattered around cities about 250 meters apart, creating smaller service areas.

These 5G base stations require less power than 4G and can be more easily connected to buildings and poles.

A large number of MIMO

Although 5G base stations are much smaller than their 4G counterparts, they carry more antennas. These antennas are multiple input multiple output (MIMO), meaning that multiple two-way sessions can be handled simultaneously on the same data channel. 5G networks can handle 20 times more sessions than 4G networks.

The large amount of MIMO ensures that the base station capacity is greatly improved, allowing a single base station to host more device sessions. That’s why 5G could drive the wider adoption of the Internet of Things. In theory, more wireless devices connected to the Internet could be deployed in the same space without overwhelming the network.

Beam forming

Making sure all the conversations go back and forth to the right place can be tricky, especially with the aforementioned interference of millimeter-wave signals. To overcome these problems, 5G base stations deploy more advanced beam technology that uses constructive and destructive radio interference to direct the signal rather than broadcast it. This effectively increases signal strength and range in a particular direction.

5G availability

The first 5G commercial network was launched in Qatar in May 2018. Since then, 5G networks have expanded all over the world, from Argentina to Vietnam. Lifewire has a nice, frequently updated list.

One thing to keep in mind, though, is that not all 5G networks currently live up to all their technological promises. Some early 5G products rely on existing 4G infrastructure, reducing the potential speed available; Other services tout 5G for marketing purposes but don’t meet the standard. A closer look at the offerings of U.S. wireless carriers reveals some pitfalls.

Wireless carriers and 5G

Technically, 5G service is already available in the United States today. But the caveats included in the announcement vary from carrier to carrier, suggesting there is still a long way to go before 5G becomes ubiquitous.

Verizon may be the biggest driver of early 5G. It announced that four cities will be part of a 5G home by October 2018, a service that requires your other devices to connect to a specific 5G hotspot via WiFi, which connects the hotspot to the network.

Verizon plans to launch 5G mobile services in Minneapolis and Chicago in April, and the service will spread to other cities later this year. Access to 5G will cost consumers an additional monthly fee, plus the cost of buying a phone that actually has 5G access (more on that later). In addition, Verizon’s deployment, called a 5G TF, doesn’t actually meet 5G NR standards.

AT&T says it will have 5G available in 12 U.S. cities by December 2018 and nine more by the end of 2019, but ultimately only the downtown business district will be accessible in those cities. In order to access the 5G network, a specific Netgear hotspot is needed to connect to the 5G service and then provide a Wi-Fi signal to phones and other devices.

At the same time, AT&T is rolling out plans for speed improvements to its 4G network, called 5GE, even if those improvements aren’t related to 5G. (This is backward compatible)

Sprint will offer 5G service in four cities by May 2019, with more coming later in the year. But Sprint’s 5G offerings make full use of MIMO units, and they don’t use millimeter-wave channels, meaning Sprint customers won’t see the same speed gains as other carriers.

T-mobile, which uses a similar model, won’t launch 5G service until the end of 2019 because they don’t have phones to connect to it.

One obstacle that could prevent the rapid spread of 5G speed is the need to roll out all those small cell towers. Their small size and lower power requirements make them technically easier to deploy than 4G technology, but that does not mean it will be easy to convince governments and property owners to install a bunch of masts everywhere. Verizon actually set up a website to petition local elected officials to speed up the deployment of 5G towers.

5G phones: When will they be available? When can I buy it?

The first purported 5G phone is the Samsung Galaxy S10 5G, which will debut in late summer 2019. You can also subscribe to a “Moto Mod” from Verizon that converts your Moto Z3 phone to a 5G-compatible device.

But unless you can’t stand the temptation of being an early adopter, you’ll want to wait; Some strange and glaring questions about carriers mean that your phone may not be compatible with your carrier’s entire 5G network.

One laggard that might surprise you is Apple: analysts believe the iPhone won’t be compatible with 5G until 2020 at the earliest. But it fits the company; Apple also lagged Behind Samsung in releasing 4G-compatible phones in late 2012.

There is no denying that 5G has arrived. 5G-compatible devices dominated Mobile World Congress in Barcelona in 2019, so expect more options in sight.

Why are people talking about 6G already?

Some experts say the downside is that 5G will not meet its goals of delay and reliability. These perfectionists have been exploring the 6G in an attempt to address these shortcomings.

There is a group working on new technologies that can incorporate 6G, called the TeraHertz Convergence Communications and Sensing Center (ComSenTer). According to the instructions, they strive for 100Gbps of bandwidth per device.

In addition to increasing reliability, but also breaking reliability and increasing speed, 6G also attempts to allow thousands of concurrent connections. If successful, this feature could help connect iot devices, enabling thousands of sensors to be deployed in industrial Settings.

Even though still in embryo, 6G has faced security concerns due to the newly discovered urgency of potential man-in-the-middle attacks in tera-Hretz-based networks. The good news is that there’s plenty of time to fix it. 6G networks are unlikely until 2030.