The 5G Predicament: Are we ready for the High-Speed Marvel?
The PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games of 2018 featured over 2,900 athletes from all around the world, who participated in over 100 events for a finish at the podium. While the event was a sports marvel in its own rights, it emerged as a platform for novel and cutting-edge IT technologies. The games were the first global platform which witnessed the unveiling of the 5G technology at such a large scale. Even though 5G development was still in the early stages, its capabilities were put on a show at the games.
The spectacle was made possible due to collaboration between Samsung, Intel and Korean Telecom (KT), who brought together the first grand-scale 5G service operation. In the event, a 4K video was streamed using 5G technology to highlight the enormous capabilities of the technology in handling high-volume of data and high-speed data transfer. The 5G network was made a reality by Korean Telecom, through a joint venture of IT partners such as Intel, Ericsson, Nokia and the Chinese E-commerce giant, Alibaba. The games also saw Samsung unveil its first 5G mobile tablet device. Apart from just streaming, the whole arena was lit up with the 5G technology and paved the way for what seemed to be the most digitally advanced Olympic games.
But what is 5G and how will it change the telecommunication scenarios as we know it?
For starters, the 5G technology is not just an update of the current 4G technology; it is the evolution of the mobile communication technology as we know it. Unlike the jump from 2G to 3G and 3G to 4G, 4G to 5G will feature a performance leap of multiple orders of magnitude over the technology we have today in our hands. In simpler words, 5G is not the successor of 4G; it is a new technology in its own ways and will open gates to a plethora of tasks which the current 4G technology cannot perform.
Here are a few features of the 5G technology:
· Enhanced Mobile Broadband: The 5G technology uses an enhanced mobile broadband range as compared to the current communication networks. The existing systems operate with multiple frequency bands, all of which are below 3.6 GHz. The initial 5G networks will be using the frequency band of 3.5 GHz and above, and may even move to sub-6 GHz range.
· Efficiency: The 5G networks will be ultra-efficient when it comes to data transfer and streaming, as it uses carrier aggregation (CA) and massive Multiple Input/ Multiple Output (MIMO) techniques.
· High-Speed: 5G is about speed over everything else. The rates are expected to cross the 20 gigabits per second (Gbps) in wireless connections, opening new avenues for home and businesses.
· Negligible Latency: Another noteworthy feature of the 5G technology is its low latency. While current technologies exhibit a latency of nearly 10 ms, the latency of 5G will be as low as 1 ms and even lower.
· The Internet of Things (IoT): IoT is showing exorbitant growth rates, more than the masses predicted and it is expected to connect billions and trillions of devices in the next decade. The 5G technology will become the flag-bearer of IoT with its pool of features.
4G vs 5G: Battle of the Generations
As we have stated before, 5G is a new technology than a successor to 4G, and there are visible differences in the working mechanism of both the generations. The figure below will provide a comparison of the performance specifications of 4G and 5G technology.
The challenges of 5G
A number of telecommunication carriers, smartphone manufacturers and wireless equipment providers have opened the gates and showcased their plans to accelerate the development and deployment of 5G technology. The unveiling at the Olympic Games and other major trade shows around the world has also fuelled the hype train for 5G. But through the entire commotion, it is essential to understand that similar to every new technology, 5G carries a massive bag of challenges behind its back which need to be addressed before the technology can be rolled out commercially.
Below are a few challenges that 5G technology might face in its early development and deployment stages.
- Uncertain and Overlapping Frequencies: There have been multiple reports and announcements which indicate that 5G, when macro-optimised, will most probably use the 5–6 GHz frequency for its operations. However, the band of the said frequency is already in use, by many satellites along with multiple other signal types and devices. Similar to various other frequency bands, this range is getting crowded, and with the introduction of 5G, it will get even more jam-packed. This overfill may lead to congestion in data transmission which may cause large-scale problems all around the globe.
- Need for Additional Cell Towers: Even though it uses a higher bandwidth than 4G, the 5G network cells will offer lower coverage when compared to the current technology. This indicates that the 5G technology will require more cell towers than 4G in order to mainstream over the course of time. The 5G coverage is nearly 300 meters in the outdoor systems and just over 2 meters in indoor systems.
- Energy Crisis: With the requirement of additional 5G network cells to make the technology available to everyone, there exists a huge need for energy to run these cells. Even though this is a huge concern for the community, developers are working to develop small cells which will consume less energy than a conventional cell by reducing the coverage area. But to cover more space, the number of cells need to be increased in a system, thus increasing the energy requirement. It is estimated that 5G small cell deployment will surpass 4G small cells in just over six years, with the total 5G small cells (or multimode small cells) in 2025 will be nearly 13 million (Source: IEEE).
- Security: Security is a crucial factor in the success of any technology and 5G is no different. There still exists a doubt on how 5G will handle critical security and privacy when it comes to advanced computing. A report by researchers at the Black Hat conference in mid-2017 revealed that 3G and 4G network phones were prone to ‘stingray’ phone tracking, unveiling the flaws of the technology (Source: ZDNet). The onus to make 5G a robust technology with strong security standards will lie on the network carriers, as they will be responsible for the identification and removal of malware, along with the responsibility to create and monitor firewalls. If the security practices are not up to the mark, there exists a scenario where people refuse to adopt the new technology.
- Availability to Everyone: Even though the challenge to make the technology available to the masses will act as a hurdle when the technology is ready for commercialisation, it is the biggest of them all. To be fair, if 5G is not made available for everyone, the hefty investments for the research and upgrades will make little to no sense. Even though we are a considerable distance away from the general commercialisation of 5G, the enormity of the task to execute the worldwide deployment of 5G should not be undervalued. The 5g trials have already begun, and as the decade will reach its culmination, we can expect a full rollout of the technology.
Even though there are considerable challenges in the development, design and deployment of 5G, none of them is expected to be a show stopper. Once released, 5G technology is expected to change the way we see telecommunication for the better. Moving over buzzwords, this new technology is expected to provide limitless connectivity for one and all while accelerating the digital transformation of the industries. More than just connectivity, 5G will be a driving force for growth as it will team up with the Internet of Things to take things further. Many reports forecast the existence of over one billion devices connected to 5G technology by the end of 2025 (Source: GSMA). These goals, however distant, can only be achieved if we witness a unity among industries, the government and the general public for maximum results.
Conclusion
Despite all the challenges it faces, the commercial deployment of 5G technology is around the corner, and we can expect to use 5G devices in 2–3 years. Multiple carriers are actively investing in R&D for 5G to maximise their reach and numbers as soon as the technology hits the market. The 5G technology is not just an upgrade to the current mobile networks, but a telecommunication revolution in its own way. The technology is expected to shake the whole industry and will change the way how providers manage, sell and deliver their services. While many experts forecast 2020 as the approximate date of arrival of 5G, the industry is already geared up for the start of the new connectivity era in the 21st century, which will shape the future as we know it.
