Don’t believe the 5G hype
5G is punted as the next big thing in connectivity, with super-fast multi-Gbps speeds and low latency for wireless networks the selling points.
A new global research report by UBS, titled “Where will 5G fall on Hype vs Reality spectrum?”, warns that you should not believe all the hype around the technology.
According to the report, 5G today is little more than a vision and will look “an awful lot like 4G LTE” using similar or identical techniques to send and receive data.
The UBS report said 5G is facing major challenges, including:
- Mobile network innovation remains largely stalled.
- The scarcity of optimal low-band spectrum is forcing 5G into the unchartered waters of millimetre wave frequencies.
“So as spectral efficiency remains constrained by the laws of RF physics, the search for capacity with 5G turns to the new frontier of extremely-high millimetre wave (mmW) frequencies >24GHz,” said UBS.
While there is a lot of spectrum available in the extremely-high millimetre wave bands, it comes with drawbacks:
- Relatively weak propagation that would require a super-dense network of 5G small cells.
- High absorption which turns buildings, hills, even raindrops into 5G’s mortal enemies.
“Cost-performance analysis of 5G vs 4G does not look good for the new kid,” said UBS.
Although new developments like software-defined networking and sophisticated antenna technology may help contain 5G’s proportionate cost, it will not be enough.
“High frequencies implying 50-100-times greater cell density combined with the lack of a massive spectral efficiency gain from the technology suggest challenging economics for 5G.”
Now read: This video shows the difference between 4G and 5G
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