[Guest post type] Do We Actually Need 5G?
Not too long ago the world was astonished by 3G and its speed. People couldn’t believe that mobile connection can be that fast, but the progress didn’t stop and in 2009 users were surprised once again with 4G (LTE) - an even faster connection than anyone could imagine. Now, we’re getting 5G. However, with an already extremely fast 4G connection the world is functioning perfectly fine, we’re streaming Netflix on our phones and sending each other 1Gb videos of our cats, so do we actually need 5G?
What Do We Need 5G for at All? Why Fix Something That Isn’t Broken?
The world functioned perfectly with horses and carriages too, but then we got cars and now we can travel 400km in 3 hours instead of 2 days. We all won from the invention the same as we did from phones, then mobile phones, 3G, 4G, and now soon 5G technology.
So no, we don’t essentially need 5G. We could survive without it, but why not use the benefits if it’s already coming into our lives?
5G Benefits to Regular User
The biggest benefit for regular users like me and you is that we’ll be getting 3-10x faster download and upload speed than the current 4G technology can offer. This means that downloading and uploading videos will take seconds. In fact, we might even forget the terms ‘downloading’ or ‘uploading’ while using our mobile devices. It will be so fast that it looks like it just loads instantly.
Another huge benefit to us is massively reduced latency. The delay means how long the connection from our device goes to the base station and back. The average 4G latency is 50ms It is rumored that 5G might decrease latency even up to 1ms. Meaning that there will virtually be no lag.
You can check your current delay and internet speed with Speedcheck and see how many times your latency would improve if it would drop to 10ms or even 1ms.
5G Benefits for the World
Yes, we’ll have a faster mobile connection and less lag, but how will this praised technology improve the world around us?
5G allows faster connections and more connections at the same time. Big factories will have smarter robots that communicate with each other in real-time with no lag.
Soon, we might have only autonomous cars like Tesla driving on the road, talking with each other, and practically eliminating road accidents, since there won’t be any human error.
The super high capacity connection would also allow IoT (Internet of Things). Meaning almost every single thing around us would be connected to the internet and be able to talk and communicate with each other to make our lives easier. For example, flowers would have humidity sensors in their pots and would trigger automatic watering, fridges would order eggs when you leave 4 or less, and many others.
Another theoretical example is remote medicine. Imagine if there is an accident, the person needs quick complex medical attention and the closest hospital or even the country doesn’t have an experienced surgeon for that injury. New technologies might allow a surgeon to operate in Switzerland or New York while a robot in a local hospital mimics every surgeon’s move precisely with no delay.
When Can We Enjoy the Future That 5G Offers?
The technology is just at its infancy stage. We still don’t know a lot. Countries around the world are just building 5G infrastructure now. We need to look at this like building a road. When you build a road after some time you see a diner pop up, then a gas station, auto repair shop, and so on…
Right now, we as simple mobile device users can buy a suitable 5G device and enjoy fast internet if our data provider already offers 5G, but futuristic technologies will take time to implement. It might be a year or even 5 years. What is clear is that we don’t know what exactly 5G will allow us to do, but we know it’s going to be amazing and extremely fast!
