The Year of 5G?

You’ve probably heard 5G recently.  Whether it be from a commercial, news, or overhearing a conversation, it is unlikely that you have been able to miss the immense hype that has surrounded the implementation of 5G networks.  It is, however, more likely that you have little idea as to what 5G really is or what it means for your internet and cellular connection. (National Geographic explains why you should)

5G is a brand new wireless technology that will supposedly allow for internet speeds orders of magnitude faster than the current standards.  In fact, wireless companies have made claims like 1GBps download speeds on their 5G networks. That’s ludicrously fast. Speeds like this would allow for unprecedented amounts of data to be transmitted quickly and efficiently, which would resonate through the the entire Internet of Things, spawning before-undreamt-of innovations.  5G would also reduce network latency, which is the time it takes for input on a device to be processed and responded to. For example, current networks may have latencies of around 20ms, so when you click on a link, it takes about 20 milliseconds for the website to start loading. On a 5G network, such latency would be reduced to as little as 1ms.  This would allow real-time data to be much more reliable, for example, for implementation in self-driving cars, where the extra 19ms on current networks could be the difference between a deadly accident and a mere near-accident.

5G works by taking advantage of shorter wavelength radio bands in order to carry more data.  Typical cellular networks operate in the ranges of several hundred megahertz frequency, but to obtain the information carrying capabilities necessary for 1GBps, network providers have to turn to light waves with frequencies of about 20-100 Gigahertz.  There are some drawbacks from using these shorter wavelength waves, however. The effective range of these frequencies is significantly shorter, there is a larger amount of interference to filter out, and they are not as penetrating as longer radio waves.  This means that 5G networks will need more robust networks consisting of a much larger number of radio stations, which for some is a major concern. The health effects of these more energetic waves is unclear and these more abundant radio boxes could be an eyesore in many neighborhoods.

Carriers like Verizon and AT&T promised 5G by the end of 2018, and while they technically carried through on those promises, we’ve still got a couple more years to wait before 5G is the mainstream for most American cell phones.  The 5G networks that Verizon and AT&T implemented in October and December, respectively, are not for cellular devices directly, but rather connect to a 5G modem and replace wired internet to a house. The modem then converts the 5G to a Wi-Fi connection and communicates with the devices.  What makes 5G slow to implement is the necessity of all new radio towers and also new antennae in devices. The phone you’re carrying around can not access 5G networks. Verizon, Sprint, and others are working to get out phones that will support the new network type. The Moto Z3, for example, is slated to get a Moto Mod that will allow it to work on 5G networks this year.  Even so, the number of cities covered by 5G should steadily increase over the next 2-3 years, as will the availability of phones that can connect to a 5G network. If you want to read even more about some specific of 5G, check out this article from cnet.  

Some controversy has risen as AT&T has rolled out a change to some customers that shows their network connection as 5Ge, even though the phone does not actually support 5G connection.  The rest of the industry has pushed back, with Verizon writing a formal complaint and T-Mobile ribbing AT&T on Twitter. This is scary because if AT&T starts confusing customers about what 5G really is now, then the future of the network industry appears murky with misleading terms and general confusion about product specifications, which is not good for anyone.  Ars Technica reported on AT&T’s response to this pushback.  

If you want to keep up with 5G news, I recommend this page from TechRadar which contains a timeline of news regarding 5G’s implementation.