FEATURE: 5G
new frequencies are being added as
supplemental download bandwidth, such as
those from CBRS at 3.5GHz, alongside other
high-capacity, short distance spectrum in the
24–100GHz range.
MYTH #2: 5G will replace 4G
FACT: 4G will work hand-in-
glove with 5G
Without doubt, 4G will be with us for the
foreseeable future and will almost certainly
grow to a point of ubiquitous coverage.
It is designed to work hand-in-glove with
5G and is continuing to develop, including
the advance to Gigabit-Class LTE (Long-
Term Evolution), providing theoretical
performance of up to 1Gbps. Rather than
being replaced by 5G, 4G will ‘shift up
a generation’ as more networks rollout
Gigabit-Class LTE.
According to Ericsson’s 2019 Mobility
Report, momentum continues in the
build-out of 4G (LTE) networks. Global 4G
population coverage was around 75% at
the end of 2018 and is forecast to reach
over 90% in 2025. In addition, it points
out that there are now 777 commercial 4G
networks deployed, with 311 upgraded to
LTE-Advanced and 36 Gigabit LTE networks
now commercially launched.
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The mobile industry is also committed to
the long-term future of 4G as a network
infrastructure component and it will be used
by operators as the connection manager to
provide the data path for 5G until it is strong
enough to stand alone.
MYTH #3: 5G will arrive all
at once
FACT: 5G is rolling out in phases
A lot of people have predicted that the
rollout of 5G will take years, but it’s more
accurate to say it will take time to become
ubiquitous but is already out there now. In
the US, T-Mobile launched its low-band 5G
service ‘nationwide’ in December leveraging
600Mhz and other spectrum assets. While
the T-Mobile service is widely deployed, it
provides limited performance advantages
over today’s Gigabit-Class LTE. In South
Korea, for example, one of the network
operators already has more than three
million 5G subscribers. But as a general rule,
it will take time for the high-performance
and ultra-low-latency versions of 5G to
appear and it will happen in phases.
In terms of 5G coverage in the UK, EE,
Vodafone, Three, BT, O2 and VOXI (an
MVNO using the Vodafone network) have
rolled out 5G services currently available in
22 towns and cities on at least one network.
On a global scale, Ericsson’s Mobility
Report predicts that global 5G coverage is
expected to reach between 55% and 65%
by the end of 2025.
MYTH #4: The benefits of 5G
will only be available once it’s
deployed in my region
FACT: Gigabit-Class LTE
already provides some of the
same benefits that 5G will offer
Today’s Gigabit-Class LTE has performance
characteristics that many people will find
acceptable compared to their current
wired networks. In many cases, it will offer
much faster connectivity than their current
infrastructure. It also offers the benefits of
going wireless, with significant flexibility
advantages and cost savings compared to
traditional wired WANs.
Gigabit-Class LTE is also backward
compatible – in places where the network
hasn’t yet arrived, it can be specified as
part of a solution, becoming active as soon
as the network arrives. Crucially, adopting
Gigabit-class LTE also puts users on a
pathway to 5G, allowing them to easily
upgrade when coverage is rolled out in
their locality.
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