What is 5G?
5th generation mobile network (5G) is the latest generation of mobile networking. It’s a new way of connecting our mobile devices, with previous standards being 1G, 2G, 3G, and 4G.
5G is intended to bring high speed, ultra-low latency, reliable connectivity to all, improving on the previous generations of mobile networking. Real-world speeds can surpass 1 gigabit per second, as opposed to the previous generation, 4G LTE, which can only achieve up to 50 megabits per second. Latency can reach as low as 1 millisecond. For context, the average eye blink is 100 to 400 milliseconds.
For a closer look at 5G, you can watch the following video by Marques Brownlee:
How does 5G work?
5G builds off of pre-existing 4G LTE infrastructure and improves upon it. Cellular towers still send signals to a wide area which connects them to the main network. Your mobile devices still connect normally.
What’s different, though, is the technology your devices use to connect to the network. 5G expands on the number of radio frequencies that it can use, allowing for better speeds and connectivity. There are 3 main radio frequencies used by 5G: low-band, mid-band, and high band.
Low-band uses similar frequencies to 4G LTE. They only give small incremental increases to speeds but provide the same range and coverage as 4G LTE.
Mid-band uses a higher frequency than low-band, allowing increased speeds of up to 900 megabits per second. The higher frequency comes at a cost of decreased range and coverage than low-band frequencies. It’s similar to your WiFi network at home: you may get a perfectly good signal inside your home, but once you step outside, you lose signal. This drawback makes it only possible to have mid-band in cities, rather than everywhere.
High-band uses a very high frequency, to the point where radio wavelengths have a length of only a millimetre (known as millimetre wave or mmWave). Low-band and mid-band frequencies, by contrast, can have wavelengths of up to 2 feet.
High-band can offer speeds in excess of a gigabit per second, although it has a very short range. This is similar to how you can hear the low rumble of a jet engine from miles away but can only hear the high-pitched screeching when it is directly overhead. This makes high-band suitable only in very dense cities since its waves have difficulty going through walls, windows, and even the rain.
5G also uses a new technology called beamforming. In previous generations, cell towers would just broadcast a signal in any general direction, making it more spread out, but not as strong. With beamforming, a tower can concentrate the signal in the direction of a specific mobile device, giving a stronger, faster signal.
How do I get started using 5G?
To start using 5G, you’ll need to upgrade to a 5G-compatible device. Most manufacturers are beginning to ship devices that are 5G compatible. You’ll also need to be in a region that has 5G rolled out and be within the range of a 5G cell tower.
In Summary
5G is the 5th generation of mobile networking. It can support higher speeds lower latencies than ever seen before on mobile networks by using both new technologies and expanding on current infrastructure.
Soon, 5G can be used to keep us connected and possibly expand the realm of the Internet of Things (IoT), with things like self-driving cars.
For a more in-depth, technical analysis on 5G, you can watch the following video by Real Engineering:
