IT pro’s guide to the evolution and impact of 5G technology (free PDF)

5G, the next generation of mobile tech, is still a ways off from becoming a commercial platform. But the momentum is building, as research and trials, industry partnerships, equipment development, and standards approvals push the technology forward. This ebook offers a look at what 5G is promising to offer and how its progress is unfolding.

From the ebook:

One of the largest shifts in technology is due to come with the adoption and proliferation of 5G mobile connectivity. The 5G standard promises more bandwidth, lower latency, and faster speeds, impacting both consumers and businesses alike.

5G technologies were heavily hyped at the 2017 CES in Las Vegas, and the 2018 show was no different. As part of a panel titled Mobile Innovation: How 5G will Enable the Future, leaders from Baidu, Qualcomm, and Verizon shared some of the biggest takeaways of what the coming changes to connectivity will mean for society.

Here are three key takeaways from that panel and what IT pros and business leaders need to know about them.

1. 5G adoption won’t be immediate
The number of connected mobile devices in the world surpassed the number of human beings all the way back in 2014. So needless to say, it won’t be a walk in the park to get all those devices and users onto the 5G standard.

Verizon CTO Hans Vestberg said that the transition will happen in time, but that 5G will exist alongside 4G for quite a while. Technologies like Gigabit LTE, however, are helping to provide a foundation for 5G and will bridge the gap between the generations, according to Qualcomm president Cristiano Amon.

The official worldwide 5G standards were approved in December 2017, but there is still a lot of work to be done on behalf of cities, device manufacturers, and the carriers themselves. Vestberg said that Verizon is aiming to make it into three to five markets this year with residential broadband built on the millimeter wave spectrum. Rival AT&T has also claimed that it will have real 5G in 12 markets by the end of the year.

Baidu COO Qi Lu said that his company is currently working with the Chinese government to build out infrastructure and policies to assist and enable 5G deployments.

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