5G Perspective

HOW DOES

HOW DOES 5G DIFFER FROM 4G? 5G will provide greater capacity to transmit data than ever before by providing access to higher frequencies. Most notably, 5G will provide access to millimetre wave frequencies, which is the spectrum band between 30 GHz and 300 GHz. This means that networks will have the ability to better cope with many high-demand applications all at once. At present, the quality of a 4G connection is largely dependent on the number of other mobile device connections in your immediate vicinity. Simply put, there’s only so much capacity in any given area. This is why it’s often difficult to get a signal at busy times and places. However, 5G won’t have this problem at all, since it has far greater headroom and the ability to scale intelligently according to each individual user’s specific data need. Network type How long would it take to download the twohour-long “Guardians of the Galaxy Movie”? What you could do while waiting... 1G 2G 3G 1981 1998 2001 Phone calls Phone calls Phone calls tEXTS tEXTS INTERNET PAGE 8

3G 384 Kbps (2001) 4G 100 Mbps (2009) 5G 10 Gbps (2019) 26 6 3.6 Hours Minutes Seconds Fly from New York to Sydney, including check in times! Run a quick mile and catch up on Facebook Ask…“Is it downloaded yet?” 4G SMART HOME 5G 2009 2019 ? Phone calls Phone calls tEXTS tEXTS INTERNET INTERNET 4k HD VIDEO ULTRA HD/3D VIDEO At the 5G Innovation Centre in the University of Surrey, an experiment on a two-wheeled robot illustrated the difference between 4G and 5G. When the signal was switched to 4G, the robot lost signal and collapsed. But when it was controlled by 5G, it moved around seamlessly. As an indicator of how intelligent and flexible 5G will be, a technique called ‘network slicing’ will enable the carving out of distinct virtual networks within the physical network environment. As such, we can expect to see many more Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs) popping up, which will increase competition and eventually force mobile plan prices to decrease. All this should add up to having a fast, stable connection wherever users are and whatever they’re doing on their phones. PAGE 9