5G Technology Myths and Facts
5G technology is one of the most talked-about topics this year. The benefits and advantages it holds over the current 4G LTE, including but not limited to ultra-fast speed, far lower latency, and higher network capacity make it worth knowing about.
However, just like any other upcoming technology, there are some misconceptions around it. The purpose of this article is to debunk those myths around 5G and present the facts most objectively.
5G Myths
5G Can Cause Cancer
This is one of those myths which first surfaced when 3G was introduced and then at the time of 4G adoption. Now, 5G technology is being falsely accused to cause cancer due to its higher frequency wireless signals.
Sure, the mmWave (high-band spectrum) works at a far higher frequency than its predecessor technologies. These frequency waves are still not strong enough to cause any permanent damage to the body. As per this report from WHO, 5G signals do not cause any health danger to humans, let alone cancer.
Coronavirus Can Spread Through 5G Signals
Wait, what!? This is the most absurd myth about 5G which is spreading on the internet like a wildfire. 5G technology and COVID-19 has no connection, whatsoever. The only way Coronavirus spread is when a person encounters an infected person physically or through sneeze or cough.
The information on 5G signals travels over non-ionizing radio waves. Besides, there is no evidence of any contribution of 5G technology in spreading Coronavirus. After all, the countries where there is no 5G network are equally affected with COVID-19, and this report from WHO confirms this.
5G Will Make 4G Devices Obsolete
4G LTE network is not going anywhere anytime soon. So, your 4G device will continue to work as it is. As people gradually move over to the 5G network, the connectivity on your current 4G network will only improve due to less crowd.
The purpose of both 5G and 4G LTE network is the same, that is, to provide a reliable and fast network connectivity. The only difference is that the 5G network makes use of radio technology to transmit the signals over the high-frequency spectrum.
5G would result in job loss: 5G technology is the first true network that can act as a reliable backbone of future ventures. Technologies like autonomous vehicles, remote surgery, IoT, virtual reality/augmented reality/mixed reality, etc. are slated to get the most benefit out of 5G technology.
With that, the demand for people to work in these newly minted industries will rise. 5G technology will give rise to new employment domains and thus create new jobs.
5G Facts
5G network will not work on 4G devices: 5G network will not work on a 4G smartphone. This is so because the 5G network as well as the 5G device comes equipped with specialized 5G hardware that enables the ultra-fast speed 5G is invented.
For instance, Snapdragon 865 chipset, which comes in 5G phones, is embedded with an X55 5G modem. X55 5G modem enables the reception of signals that are sent over the 5G spectrum band. This little piece of hardware distinguishes a 5G phone from a 4G phone. Therefore, to reap the benefits of 5G technology, one must get a 5G-enabled device and 5G network connection. On the other hand, a 5G-ready device can connect to a 4G LTE network.
5G is going to be a multimillion-dollar industry: Mobile technology is one industry with potentially the fastest economic growth. With the induction of 5G, an approximate of 113 billion Euros per year are expected to be generated along with 2.3 million new jobs around the world. This includes further development in technology and infrastructure required to set up and maintain 5G technology.
5G will revolutionize businesses: With its tremendously high speed and incredibly low latency, 5G technology is going to have a mammoth impact on the digital and streaming businesses like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hotstar, etc.
Industries such as IoT, artificial intelligence, augmented reality, virtual reality, mixed reality, etc. are expected to evolve to maturity and go mainstream with 5G technology. Health and medicine sectors will realize its full potential with 5G technology.
5G Technology Is Not Just Meant For Smartphones
As soon as the news of the 5G network arrived, the search for 5G-enabled smartphones surged dramatically on the internet. Sure, connectivity on our phone is going to be phenomenally fast with a 5G network, but it’s just a small change that 5G will bring in our lives.
5G technology is going to be extensively used for other areas of our social life. Autonomous vehicles will make use of 5G technology to reduce the number of accidents that occur due to human error (almost 95%).
With 5G, almost every device on planet earth will be connected using IoT. Other digital products like wearables, AR/VR/MR headsets, smart devices, etc. will dramatically improve in performance due to 5G. In short, it’s going to be a socioeconomic transformation of our lives with 5G.
Conclusion
The Internet always overflows with unfiltered information about everything, including and especially with something new (5G technology in our case). And it’s easy to be driven by the most eye-catching information.
But we must always pause and ask ourselves the authenticity of that piece of information. We should try to stick to research-backed facts from industry-reliable sources as much as possible. This article has attempted to educate its readers about 5G facts and myths.
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