The ability to utilize
time and effort to increase productivity today has been drastically decreased
with our fast paced society. In ways to assist in our productivity, more work
has been moved to the mobile sphere of technology. To accommodate an increased
mobile presence, there has been the implementation of mobile networks readily
available for mobile devices that are equipped to access the mobile networks.
Original beginning with Zero Generation Technology (0G) which first appeared in
the 1970s and currently with the most current generation, 4G. Yet now by 2020,
5G (fifth-generation technology) will be available in the US. What this means
is an increased reaching up to 10 GB per second and utilizing frequencies of 24
GHz. With the increased power of the mobile network, many lawmakers are calling
for an increased emphasis on the technology especially with the Federal Trade Commission
and the Federal Communications Commission along with talks lingering through
the European Union and Asian Nations. There is also the question of cost with
the integration of 5G and the phasing out of 4G.
The main perks of switching to 5G
from the current 4G LTE is in fact speed. With 5G offering speeds of up to 10
GB/sec, that means that we can have fiber optic speeds on our mobile devices.
There is also the utilization of 24 GHz. “These include extremely high or ‘millimeter
wave’ frequencies above 24 GHZ, considered until recently to be unusable for
mobile applications.” (Downes, Par 5) There is also the fact that integration
is done by using the already present cell towers and outfitting them with the
software and hardware necessary for 5G to begin transmitting.
With the great speed and potential
of 5G, there are a few items that linger and question the usability of the
mobile network. First and foremost, there are many mobile devices that will be
needed to be outfitted with the software and hardware that is need for the
device to receive the 5G signal. This could cause an increase in the cost of
the devices depending on the cost of production and whether the supplier costs
are higher than expected. There is also the possibility that this cause a lack
of security within the device. This could cause harm to the customer as it is a
security issue for basic data. Also, there is the issue of funding. Whether or
not the government will assist in the providing of funds or to leave it to the
private sector, it is necessary that $2 trillion be garnered alone for the
network upgrades necessary for 5G to become reality. It is time for the new
mobile network and 5G is most definitely the most formidable choice coming from
4G LTE.
Sources:
Downes, Larry. "What Is 5G and Why Should Lawmakers Care?"Washington Post. The Washington Post, 26 Oct. 2015. Web. 28 Oct. 2015.
What is interesting about this article is the speed at which 5G technologies is being developed and implemented. With Verizon starting trials in 2017, and Korea and Japan in 2018 and 2020, respectively, 100Mb-10Gb/s speeds may be here much sooner than most people expect. One thing, I think, many people overlook anytime a new generation of wireless network comes out is that with greater download/upload speeds, it only encourages companies and people to design better technologies, that use more data to provide a better experience; this has been seen, especially, with streaming resolution. When we only had 3G technologies, you could barely download a video that streams at 1080p, however, with the advent of 4G LTE downloading the same video is no problem. So people who see "10Gb/s speeds" and expect immediate downloads of movies and videos may be disappointed because most likely what will happen is that the standard video resolution will change from being 1080p to 4K resolutions, which will drastically increase the size of those video files.
ReplyDelete5G is the future. 5G is the next step for technology. With speeds as fast as 10 gigabytes per second, there is no question as to why 5G will revolutionize download speeds. Not only will 5G be able to have download speeds this fast, but this will be accessible on mobile phones as well.
ReplyDeletePreviously, 4G was what mobile phones used. Although 4G had fast download speeds, improvement is always possible. This is what paved the way for 5G, which will revolutionize download speeds. 5G being a much faster version of 4G is a prime example of Moore’s law, which states that technology is always advancing not only to become quicker and stronger, but to also take up less hardware space. 5G is a prime example of this because speeds as fast as 10 gigabytes per second is phenomenal, and 4G would never touch that.
One implication of the implementation of 5G technology is that in order for 5G to be utilized, companies must either create new cell towers, or update outdated ones. This can prove to be a costly measure to implement 5G technology. However, even though this may cost a lot to implement, I believe that service providers will charge more for 5G services. However, due to the speed of 5G, customers are willing to pay more because of the benefits of 5G.
Another implication of 5G technology is that although consumers will be anxious to be able to access it, not all devices may be able to use/access this 5G technology. Due to the fact that 5G is a new technology that will be implemented as soon as 2020, simpler phones will not be able to fully utilize the power of 5G. Although smartphones have taken the US by storm, most smartphones in use right now will not be able to use 5G technology. Smartphones such as Blackberry, Android and iPhone will have to not only find a way to integrate this technology into their phones, but do so in a cost-efficient way that would not affect the cost of these phones.
Although the future of 5G technology is in the hands of service providers to give to consumers, the cost of integrating 5G into our everyday lives will be a big one. This will come not only from cell towers being updated (or completely new cell towers being put up), but also from smart phone manufacturers like Blackberry and Apple integrating 5G technology into their latest new phones.
In conclusion, 5G technology should be usable by 2020, and although there are some negative implications that may go with this 5G technology, mots of them include the cost of integration. After overlooking the prices of integration, the benefits of 5G technology are infinite. The download speeds are significantly faster than 4G, which confirms Moore’s Law, which states that technology is constantly improving. In conclusion, the integration of 5G technology by 2020 will be a great improvement to download speeds as well as show an improvement for service providers.