By Tripti Chanda
The world of technology is full of many poorly-understood terms which are constantly flung around, but none has been trending as much as 5G technology. The G stands for generation, denoting a revolution for the standard of technology it represents. With the hype over 4G still at its height, the tech giants are already poised to unleash 5G.
The worldwide network
5G was in evidence everywhere at the Mobile World Conference in Barcelona this year, although most users are still adapting to 4G technology, with many around the world still lacking access to it. For some, it is out of reach as they have to deal with patchy 3G.
However, this generational change in the technology is not just about the network which gives online access, but also the cellular devices which use the network. With each rollout, devices must have exponential upgrades to support the new network. With the way the technological development is racing forward at the moment, starting with the debut of 3G in 2001, it is hard for the makers and users of devices which connect to these networks to keep up.
High expectations worldwide
Still in its experimental phase, 5G is expected to be rolled out this year in the United States, followed by rollouts in Japan and South Korea next year joined by China the year after. Europe is hoping to introduce 5G slowly, starting in 2020, with worldwide-scale sales starting off in 2025.
Unlike its predecessors, 5G does not only involve cellular devices but integrates the internet of things (IoT) into the network. Objects around us such as cars, offices, homes and even the streets will be able to interact with each other over the network. This means that not only will network providers have to expand their bandwidths to accommodate these additional uses, but manufacturers of electronic appliances will have to update their devices.
Managing expectations
With such a great vision in sight, the common man will have to take giant strides to be a part of it. People are still trying to understand the limits and advantages of 4G and most are unwilling to upgrade from 3G. Some who experienced the initial-release versions of 4G remain unimpressed and do not see any reason to upgrade. After negative popular feedback to stop-gap and interim upgrades, it may be difficult for many current 4G users to let go again of a technology that they have just become comfortable with and to upgrade all their devices once again.
With better technology come higher prices. To save on costs, network providers might have to shut down the older 2G and 3G networks, which a large number of people are still using. Indeed, many of the advances promised by 5G — like higher speed and faster data transfer — can be accomplished by upgrades to the current 4G network, which may hold many people and providers back from upgrading at all.
Since the network will not be available for quite some time, production engineers have a window in which they can decide the future of this tech. If they are successful in making the network user-friendly and readily available, 5G could make the entire world more integrated and efficient.
Featured Image Source: Flickr
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