5G Connectivity Is About to Be Our New Reality
If you ever sit around and think about how inconvenient everything is and how long everything takes, you’re not alone. We frequently lament the fact that our iPhones can only function as a few different devices (Apple, you’re really slacking), that we can’t just telepathically get our friend’s location and then relay it to our Uber driver and that we STILL can’t charge from across the room. Come on. Not to mention the speeds we get on our phones and computers aren’t blazingly fast enough. Boo.
Good news though! That’s all about to change. You can start the grieving process for 4G networks, because the future is here and it’s 5G. With 5G, carriers like Verizon and AT&T seek to transmit data 10 times faster than on 4G networks. Wowza. Buffering might become something we complain about to our grandkids — “back in my day we had to wait for Netflix to load…”
While the plan is for Verizon and AT&T to deliver the 5G pilot program to select homes and businesses this year, standard 5G (5G with set specifications and performance parameters) isn’t expected until the early 2020s. But the companies sure are in a rush to appease demanding consumers, so it’s very possible we’ll see broader access sooner. And if you’re one of the lucky few to get access to the pilot program, we fully expect a detailed report.
What would you do with faster internet access? Tell us @BritandCo!
(h/t IEEE Spectrum, photos via Getty)