5G Could be Coming to Your Area Soon - But What's the Big Deal?

Published: 17th July 2019 10:39

 

You might have seen the news recently about 5G coming to your town or city. 2019 marks the time when the rollout slowly begins all across the UK. So, what exactly is it, and why should you be interested in this new technological development?

5G stands for the 5th generation, and in this case, it refers to a set of technologies around mobile phones. Each generation brought about new possibilities, expanding on what was possible.

1G allowed the use of mobile devices and their communication via radio waves. This debuted back in Japan in 1979, with early primitive and briefcase-sized systems. 2G in 1991 upgraded to a digital signal over an analogue one and introduced the concept of SMS and MMS text and image messaging.

3G upgraded the previous possibilities of mobile phones to allow for much greater levels of speed and data transmission. This allowed the first steps in real online connectivity. 4G then added to this further, boosting possible speeds up to 5 times over the last generation, with lower latency (faster response time).

5G, when it finally arrives, will allow up to a 20-times speed increase over 4G networks, with even lower levels of latency.

The advantages as noticed by regular users, in this case, will come from online connectivity. For reference, consider online casino games like those from websites listed on Casino Wings. These websites aren't just popular for their multitude of bonuses systems and big wins. In reality, a large part of their success comes through their ease of access and low loading times over modern networks.

These succeed, in this case, because they are some of the rare services perfectly suited to 4G infrastructure. With 5G, however, much larger games will be possible and, perhaps more applicable to most people, video streaming should be as near flawless as it is at home.

No more waiting around, no more buffering, and the ability to video chat easily anywhere within their range are just some of the benefits of these systems.

What are the downsides?

For one thing, claims about the danger of 5G radiation are entirely overstated and incorrect, as outlined by Wired. Rigorous scientific study has confirmed this, so those wary about such problems should rest easy.

That is not to say that this technology is without its limitations. For one thing, many users will need to purchase new devices in order to hook into this network. As we tend to upgrade our device every few years anyway, this might be simply overcome through your next natural upgrade.

More problematic is the cost of the infrastructure, and the far more limited range on a 5G signal. While 4G towers can carry a signal up to 70 kilometres, 5G networks only have an effective range of around 1500 meters, an obviously significant downgrade.

This means far more stations are required to blanket an area, which means the first few years of this technology are going to be very cost prohibitive.

What does this all add up to? While trajectory here is difficult to predict, we would only expect to see 5G networks see major coverage in popular urban centres. Otherwise, their limitations and current costs will render them untenable, at least until possible technological solutions for these issues are found.

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