5 Predictions for Mobile Technology After the Mass Adoption of 5G
The new 5G standard for phones is just starting to make a splash. There’s a lot to do in the development department and lots of equipment installations necessary before everyone can enjoy 5G hyper speeds.
While there are some predictions on the transition from the current 4G LTE dominance to 5G, nobody really knows how long it will take. But what happens once it does and 5G is the new standard?
Here are five most likely to happen scenarios that await us in the near future.
1. Faster Speeds and Bigger Data
With 10 million subscribers already on 5G in 2019, providers expect to have up to two billion consumers on 5G by 2024. Drastically lower latency, 10 times faster data, and much more bandwidth will change every aspect of our lives. This is where smart appliances truly become interconnected and a smart home becomes the norm.
Industry studies expect 4G LTE subscriptions to peak in 2022, and then slowly starting to decline as 5G takes over. People, governments and businesses will become more connected in ways never seen before. Huge amounts of data will transfer almost instantly, speeding up background and credit checks along with access to personal data. Real-time reporting capabilities will speed up machine learning for artificial intelligence. Video will transfer instantly. Decentralized broadcasting platforms like YouTube and others will explode as more people upload bigger files.
2. Smarter Cars, Cities, and Law Enforcement
Cars are getting smarter, and the process is speeding up with breakthroughs in software and technology. Most vehicles now have some level of autonomous operation including parking, braking, backing, and lane warnings. All these systems work thanks to modern cars having several cameras, dozens of sensors, and computers embedded into every system.
As this trend continues, we’ll see even more software embedded into our vehicles, and with the emergence of smart cities, cars will get instant updates on congestion and road closures, eventually leading to faster commutes and less congestion. The car’s systems will communicate position, velocity, navigation, proximity to other vehicles and operating conditions to maintenance apps and manufacturers.
Increasingly, vehicles will be important data hubs, providing camera and weather data, sending information for investigators and updating map services.
AI or police analysts can send cars to the nearest inspection station, reducing tickets and wait times at motor vehicle departments. Any officer will check insurance and safety right on the spot. Your car will transmit everything the officer wants back to his car.
You can already access instant customization, purchase, and delivery of vehicles online, and insurance, accessories, and services.
In the 5G future, you’ll take a virtual test drive from your couch with VR glasses and a phone. The salesman will sit right in the living room via telepresence, discussing features and colors as if in person. Car, phone, and the house will schedule delivery and dealer service with no human involvement.
3. Augmented Reality and Smarter Homes
Smart home applications will explode in number. Climate control, darkening windows, automated shutters, and phone-programmed irrigation are already here. Security alarms, AI cameras, communications, and media will combine with energy consumption sensors, learning about consumer habits and automatically setting up preferred options.
Mobile apps are in a perfect position to exploit the upcoming data revolution, as more parts of our lives come online, and many of the new things in the Internet of Things will need their own app developed. The heating checkup will be scheduled for the fall tune-up automatically. Landscapers, repairmen, and contractors can be scheduled and paid electronically by the house because there’s finally enough bandwidth to control a huge network of sensors.
Friends will hang around in each other’s living rooms, chatting through telepresence instead of texting. The house will display personal information about repairmen with facial recognition. Overlays on your phone’s video screen, showing weather information or what a backyard fountain might look like can be projected onto picture windows.
4. Unlimited Communication and Omnipresent AI
The biggest single impact across all sectors will be on artificial intelligence. With so much speed and interconnection, real-time market data can be collated with real-time financial data. Consumer preferences and spending habits will be analyzed in conjunction with credit history and income analysis. With new sensors in just about everything including appliances, cars and even clothing, marketing plans will be drilled down to very specific subsectors.
Machine learning will classify important factors in the database and automatically target marketing programs to reach optimum archetypes for specific products. For the consumer, it will be a new age. You’ll be offered deals on products you would already buy. AI back ends on marketing software will predict that you need shaving cream and put an offer in front of you just when you need one.
5. Cloud Computing, Health Care and Personal Services
5G speed provides burst transfers of large data amounts, but most apps will be remotely operating large systems in the cloud. Cloud computing will grow exponentially because millions more people will take advantage of files stored online, now that it can be uploaded and accessed faster.
Surgeons already perform operations remotely via telepresence. It’s safe to say that remote telepresence will be more prevalent for doctors’ consults. Sensors in wearables and specialized medical devices will transmit all the vital information the doctor needs.
Your financial data, insurance information, prescriptions, medical history and shot record will finally be combined in the cloud. Any doctor and medical facility that needs access to your complete medical history will easily access it without having to jump through hoops.
Wristband fitness monitors will provide heart rate, blood pressure, respiration, and other basic vital signs. Saliva or blood sugar testers and scopes for eyes, ears, and throat can be worked at home, transmitting images and data to the doctor.
Is Full 5G Coverage Really Possible?
The number of devices that will require a connection will increase. Industry predictions project about five times the number of devices online by 2025 – at this time when 5G will finally become the norm. But will those 5G speeds look so amazing once the network approaches saturation? It seems they might, as the frequency spectrum of 5G is much higher, meaning it will be able to accommodate all these devices.
The future of 5G looks bright.
Another factor is that even when 5G is fully set, some regions will never achieve optimum speed. In large areas like the southwest deserts, there will probably be issues with certain hard to reach areas. Yet the infrastructure is much easier to set up when compared to fiber. It’s also more affordable, so those living in remote areas away from major cities might finally get fast and reliable connections they so desperately need.
Heather Redding is a content manager for rent, hailing from Aurora. She loves to geek out writing about wearables, IoT and other hot tech trends. When she finds the time to detach from her keyboard, she enjoys her Kindle library and a hot coffee. Reach out to her on Twitter.
