Faster speeds. Higher bandwidth. Lower latency. The next era of wireless technology is coming – and it will open the door to life-changing innovations
Billions of new connected devices will come online in the next decade. They’ll need to transmit significantly more data and do so reliably. But today’s wireless networks are not up to the task.
Canadian LTE (4G) networks already support fast downloads and easy streaming of content. But standard speeds and bandwidth capacity need to be much higher, while latency – the time it takes to send a signal from one point to the next – must be virtually nonexistent.
To help make this possible, 5G technology will use new frequencies of spectrum, the radio waves that are used to carry cellular signals.
WIRELESS SPECTRUM
Frequency
3KHz
300MHz
30GHz
300GHz
1mm
1m
1cm
100km
Wavelength
New higher frequencies of spectrum under consideration for 5G
Bands used for current Canadian cell networks
WIRELESS SPECTRUM
Frequency
3KHz
300MHz
30GHz
300GHz
1mm
1m
1cm
100km
Wavelength
New higher frequencies of spectrum under consideration for 5G
Bands used for current Canadian cell networks
New higher frequencies of spectrum under consideration for 5G
Bands used for current Canadian cell networks
WIRELESS SPECTRUM
Frequency
3KHz
300MHz
30GHz
300GHz
1m
1cm
1mm
100km
Wavelength
Current networks use low- and medium-band spectrum, with wavelengths in the range of up to half a metre. Low-band radio waves can travel long distances and penetrate buildings, making them highly prized by carriers looking to offer reliable coverage.
LOW-BAND RADIO WAVE
1 metre
LOW-BAND RADIO WAVE
1 metre
LOW-BAND RADIO WAVE
1 metre
But low-band spectrum can’t carry as much data as higher-frequency waves. That’s why 5G networks will also use so-called millimetre-wave spectrum, which has wavelengths so small they are measured in millimetres.
MILLIMETRE RADIO WAVE
1 metre
MILLIMETRE RADIO WAVE
1 metre
MILLIMETRE RADIO WAVE
1 metre
These radio waves can carry huge amounts of data but don’t travel far, which means network builders need to place many small cells close together to use this spectrum.
To make the best use of different types of spectrum, networks will include a mix of traditional cell-phone towers and antennas on rooftops (carrying signals over long distances), plus a web of small cells at lower heights (supporting huge bandwidth use over shorter distances).
That combination of wireless infrastructure, along with advances in radio technology, will help carriers reduce latency and support billions of devices using more data than ever.
International bodies are finalizing performance and technical standards, and governments worldwide are consulting on the use of new spectrum frequencies.
Major 5G trials are taking place at the Winter Olympics in South Korea, where cameras attached to bobsleds are streaming live video from the point of view of the pilots. The technology is due to be rolled out by the country's wireless carriers next year.
In Canada, carriers are running tests and investing in new radio equipment and cell sites, but won’t begin deploying true 5G mobile technology until about 2020.