Latest 5G Opinions

In a recent announcement by the Japanese Prime Minister, Fumido Kishida stated that the government expects 5G coverage to reach 99% of the country’s population by 2030. That’s an increase from less than 40% coverage as of 2020. 5G networks are expanding across the globe, and data centres must be prepared to meet the new… Read More

The unparalleled speed and latency of 5G looks set to provide a swathe of opportunities for UK businesses. Some of the many use cases cited include high-performance analytics at the edge and remote control and automation for manufacturing, while the network’s comparatively high-capacity also appears to be the key to connecting an army of IoT devices to enterprise networks (known as Massive IoT).

In a recent article, I wrote about the amazing customer experiences to be had in airports such as Changi and ways to enable that customer experience. Here, I propose to extend my stopover by looking at what goes on landside, rather than airside, and how one carrier is leading the way in using the latest digital tools to reimagine operations. 

Just as Changi embodies how airport operators are reworking the customer experience, Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) is a template for how smart use of data, communications and infrastructure can reinvent the back-end processes that enable passengers to move swiftly from point A to B.

There is no doubt 5G has the potential to revolutionise the way we interact with the physical and virtual world. Yet, guesstimates of how much of a generational shift in technology it will become range from “super-fast internet at some point” to “minority report-like daily lives.” But for gaming technologies such as Virtual Reality (VR), it’s clear that 5G rollout will be a catalyst in mainstream adoption. 

Starting with what is usually hyped, we can look at the speeds of 5G. We can probably expect somewhere around 300-1000 Mb/s in the beginning, but there have been tests showcasing speeds towards 25Gb/s in specific environments.  For example, in Mitsubishi Electric and NTT DOCOMO’s 5G Outdoor Trials. In these conditions, it would be about 250 times faster than the average speed of 4G. If we equate this to Usain Bolt’s top sprinting speed (about 44km/h), it means 5G would make a person run at 11,180 km/h, or as fast as the fastest unmanned plane in the world, the Hypersonic aircraft X-43A. 

5G is set to have a huge impact on the way we live, work and play. Whilst 4G gave a major boost to the mobile internet capabilities of 3G, 5G is set to revolutionise communications in a much more significant way. Much more than just a small step-up in capabilities from 4G, 5G will bring faster speeds, higher data capacity and incredibly low latency.

There are lots of myths about 5G, but the reality is that it will be an absolute game changer. An essential element for the evolution of products and services in the increasingly data-driven world, 5G is will bring huge benefits for both consumers and businesses, generating a massive $10 trillion of revenue by 2035, according to ABI Research, as well as bringing huge benefits for consumers.

With its faster speeds, greater network capacity and incredibly low latency, 5G is set to be a game changer. Each new generation of communication technology has brought significant changes to the way we work and live. The network driven world began with 3G, marking the start of mobile internet and 4G enabling video streaming and social media. 5G is set to amplify all these things, but it’s not just about downloading video from Netflix faster.