Everything You Need to Know About 5G

5G is the 5th generation mobile network. It will take a much larger role than previous generations.

Overview 

5G will elevate the mobile network to not only interconnect people, but also interconnect and control machines, objects, and devices. It will deliver new levels of performance and efficiency that will empower new user experiences and connect new industries. 5G will deliver multi-Gbps peak rates, ultra-low latency, massive capacity, and more uniform user experience.

Benefits of 5G

5G is a new kind of network: a platform for innovations that will not only enhances today’s mobile broadband services, but will also expand mobile networks to support a vast diversity of devices and services and connect new industries with improved performance, efficiency, and cost. 5G will redefine a broad range of industries with connected services from retail to education, transportation to entertainment, and everything in between. We see 5G as technology as transformative as the automobile and electricity.

Through a landmark 5G Economy study, we found that 5G’s full economic effect will be realized across the globe by 2035, supporting a wide range of industries and potentially producing up to $12 trillion worth of goods and services.

The study also revealed that the 5G value chain (OEMs, operators, content creators, app developers and consumers) could alone generate up to $3.5 trillion in overall aggregate revenue by 2035 and support up to 22 million jobs, or more than one job for every person in Beijing, China. Of course, there are many emerging and new applications that are yet to be completely defined or even known today. That is why only time will tell what the full “5G effect” is going to be.

How fast is 5G

Per IMT-2020 requirements, 5G is expected to deliver peak data rates up to 20 Gbps. Qualcomm Technologies’ first 5G NR modem, the Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ X50 5G modem, is designed to achieve up to 5 Gbps in downlink peak data rate.

But 5G is more than about just how “fast” it is. In addition to higher peak data rates, 5G will provide much more network capacity by expanding into new spectrum, such as millimeter wave (mmWave). 5G will also deliver much lower latency for a quicker immediate response, and an overall more uniform user experience so that the data rates stay consistently high even when users are moving around. Moreover, the new 5G NR (New Radio) mobile network will be backed up by Gigabit LTE coverage foundation, which will provide ubiquitous Gigabit-class connectivity.

Services and use cases for 5G

In general, 5G use cases can be broadly categorized into three main types of connected services:

·         Enhanced Mobile Broadband: 5G will not only make our smartphones better, but it will also usher in new immersive experiences, such as VR and AR, with faster, more uniform data rates, lower latency, and cost-per-bit.

·         Mission-Critical communications: 5G will enable new services that can transform industries with ultra-reliable/available, low latency links—such as remote control of critical infrastructure, vehicles, and medical procedures.

·         Massive Internet of Things: 5G will seamlessly connect a massive number of embedded sensors in virtually everything through the ability to scale down in data rates, power and mobility to provide extremely lean/low-cost solutions.

How does 5G work

Like 4G LTE, 5G is also OFDM-based and will operate based on the same mobile networking principles. However, the new 5G NR (New Radio) air interface will further enhance OFDM to deliver a much higher degree of flexibility and scalability. For more details on 5G waveform and multiple access techniques, please refer to this this 5G waveform whitepaper.

5G will not only deliver faster, better mobile broadband services compared to 4G LTE, but it will also expand into new service areas, such as mission-critical communications and connecting the massive IoT. This is enabled by many new 5G NR air interface design techniques, such as a new self-contained TDD subframe design; for more detailed information on 5G and to understand the specific 5G NR design components, please refer to this 5G NR whitepaper.

How much is 5G

5G doesn’t have a price tag yet.

A key 5G objective is to lower the cost-per-bit (data cost) compared to 4G LTE, by leveraging new and wider spectrum in higher bands including the mmWave range.

This could potentially allow mobile operators to continue offer unlimited data plans even with increasing data consumption. This can also enable new use cases and make more applications economically viable for broader adoption in a 5G network. For example, 5G can help to proliferate immersive augmented and virtual reality, which is possible today with 4G LTE but may be limited by network capacity and data costs.

What is the difference between 4G and 5G

There are several differences between 4G vs 5G:

·         5G is a unified platform that is more capable than 4G

·         5G uses spectrum better than 4G

·         5G is faster than 4G

·         5G has more capacity than 4G

·         5G has lower latency than 4G

What is 5G Wi-Fi

5G Wi-Fi isn’t a thing.

5G is the next-generation mobile technology defined by 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project) – the standard body that also overlooked the development of 3G UMTS (including HSPA) and 4G LTE standards.

Wi-Fi is defined/standardized by IEEE and promoted/certified by the Wi-Fi Alliance, not 3GPP.

A 5G user will be able to seamlessly use 5G, 4G, and Wi-Fi since 5G will interwork both with 4G and Wi-Fi, allowing a user to simultaneously be connected to 5G New Radio (NR), LTE or Wi-Fi. Similar to Wi-Fi, 5G NR will also be designed for unlicensed spectrum without requiring access to licensed spectrum, which allows more entities to deploy 5G and enjoy the benefits of 5G technology.

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