Tech Trends in Practice

TREND 155G and Faster, Smarter Networks

The One-Sentence Definition

5G is the fifth generation of cellular network technology, which together with other network innovations will give us much faster and more stable wireless networking, as well as the ability to connect more and more devices and enable richer, more varied streams of data.

What Are 5G and Faster Smarter Networks?

Networking technology may not seem as immediately fashionable or sexy compared to other innovations such as artificial intelligence, robotics, and automated vehicles, but it’s the backbone of our online society and a smarter world. As bandwidth and coverage have increased, more has become possible, from email to web browsing, location-based services, and streaming video and games. Today it’s all about sending a constant stream of real-time data back and forth between ourselves, the apps, and devices we use, and the cloud services which power them.

Faster data hasn’t ever meant simply more data – it also means an increasing variety of data that opens up exciting possibilities for innovation. But as the number of cameras, scanners, and sensors collecting data from IoT devices (circle back to Trend 2 for more) increases, networks need to become smarter, as well as faster, to handle the new paradigms they will service.

The big driver this year is the arrival of the first consumer 5G networks. As well as greatly increased speed, the 5G networking protocols can cope with connecting far more devices within ...