5G TECHNOLOGY AND INDIA

5G network 

We’ve been hearing/reading about 5G for quite some time. Now its about to get real, with the Department of Telecom (DOT) recently agreed to conduct trails for the use and applications of 5G technology based on the application from Telecom Service Provider (TSPs).With trials just beginning here in India, 5G tech is already available in 50 countries worldwide for instance US, France, South Korea etc. We can learn from their experiences and tame it according to our indigenous market to make it a success that tailors to our people.   

What is 5G technology?

5G in telecommunications is the 5^th generation technology standard for broadband communication, which began to form a base globally since 2019. It’s an upgrade on the 4^th generation (4G) network, which bestows connectivity to most cellphones at present. All 5G wireless devices of a specific service area will be connected to the internet and telephone network through radio waves by a local antenna. 5G is devised such that it can connect virtually to everyone and everything including machines, objects and devices. Hence it provides a well rounded connectivity, multi-Gbps (giga bits per second) peak data speed, ultralow latency, more reliability, massive network capacity, increased availability, and a more uniform user experience to more users. 

How it is different from existing technology?

5G works in three bands, low, mid and high frequency spectrum all of which have their own pros and cons.

Low spectrum shines in terms of coverage, speed of the internet and data exchange, with speed limit at 100 Mbps (megabits per second). Hence, the Telco’s can use and install it for commercial users who don’t have a high speed internet demand, but it fails to meet the specialized needs of the industry.

The mid-band spectrum, provides higher speed than low band, but is limited on coverage area and penetration signal. This band can be used by industries and specialized factories units to form specific networks within, clayed for their own needs.

Of the three bands, the high band provides the highest speed but has the least coverage and penetration speed. The internet speed of high band spectrum comes around as high as 20Gbps, which in case of 4G the maximum speed was recorded to be 1Gbps.

Global progress on 5G

From the global stand point over 50 countries has already deployed 5G. In US companies such as AT&T, T-mobiles and Verizon are the prime providers of the networks to the users. Although AT&T started as early as 2018 but others like Verizon were not far behind, they were successful in providing their broadband services to as many as 60 cities by the end of 2020.

Same is the case for China, China Unicom has also started their trials by 2018 and have ever since rolled out the services for users.

South Korean company Samsung left everyone behind, as they started researching on 5G technology in 2011. They have had an upper hand in terms of building the hardware for 5G networks for various companies.

Where does India stand in 5G technology? 

The three private telecom giants, Reliance Jio Infocomm, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea, have been allocated 5G trail spectrum by DoT in the 700MHz, 3.5GHz and 26GHz bands. With this, Bharti Airtel began its mid-band 5G trail network in Gurgaon Cyber Hub using the 5G gear provided by Ericsson, Jio started its own trail in Mumbai using an indigenous 5G gear.

These trails could not have come at a better time since India is experiencing a rapid internet thrive and dependency due to the pandemic, be it remote learning or work, increased reliance on digital payment as well as online doctor consultation. After, all the kinks have been worked out we might be able to experience 5G technology in India, perhaps by 2022.