According to a survey conducted in 2020, India was claimed to be the country with the cheapest price for internet data being provided to consumers. With an average of only $0.09 for 1GB of internet, India was praised for the highly affordable and economic service being provided by the telecom service providers. The revolution came only after Reliance Jio—a telecom company owned by Reliance Industries, stepped into the niche of telecom services. Reliance Jio launched in 2016, offered customers with free trial periods and plans worth less than a $1 a month. This forced other providers to drop their pricing, driving down the overall cost of data in the region. The second reason for Jio’s success and the widespread use of its service was the availability of 4G internet which was offered by the company. The other service providers were providing only 3G internet at a price which was almost 3 times to that being offered by Jio.
While the reform made by Jio was highly competitive, it was claimed to be a ‘not so sustainable procedure’. The claims were approved to some extent by the latest research of 2021, wherein India slipped to 28th position marking the price of internet to be 0.68$ for 1GB of internet. The rise in price, however has not affected the population of internet users. Currently, the number of internet users is significantly greater than the population itself. With the availability of reliable and faster internet, we have acclimatised ourselves to the enormous content on world wide web and are used to least buffering search engines. Owing to the advancements in the content on internet, majority of the population is joining this surf. The surf, however is getting higher everyday with the internet speed being increased parallelly. The latest advancement in the niche includes the introduction of 5G internet. The term “5G” stands for “fifth generation.”
What is 5G internet?
Wireless technology is constantly evolving. Approximately every 10 years, mobile companies release a new generation of wireless systems. Each generation is an upgraded, more advanced version of the last one. 5G is the 5th generation of mobile network. It is the latest global wireless standard after 1G, 2G, 3G, and 4G networks. 5G internet enables a new kind of network that is designed to virtually connect everyone and everything together including machines, objects, and devices. This is what makes the 5th generation more advanced over the previous generations. 5G internet will be providing faster mobile communications, which is expected to support the increasing number of electronic devices and services, including: self-driving cars, virtual reality appliances, telemedicine, remote surveillance and telesurgery. The technology is meant to deliver higher multi-Gbps peak data speeds, ultra low latency (the time interval that occurs between the user’s stimulation and the machine’s response), more reliability, massive network capacity, and a more uniform user experience to consumers. High performance and improved efficiency will thus empower new user experiences and lead to establishment of new industries. The future will be inclusive of automatic machines, a better Artificial Intelligence adaptation in softwares and hardwares.
How 5G works?
With the ongoing debate of whether use of 5G internet is safe, its of most importance to understand the basic principle of the concern. Wireless communications systems employ use of radio frequencies (a.k.a. spectrum) to carry information through the air. 5G operates in the same way as of other generations, except that it uses higher radio frequencies. These frequencies are also less cluttered which allows for it to carry more information at a much faster rate. These higher bands are called ‘millimeter waves’ (mmwaves). They were previously unused for telecommunication services but have now been opened up for licensing by regulators. Previously, they had been untouched by the public as the equipment to use them was largely inaccessible and expensive.
5G technology will also be able to ‘slice’ a physical network into multiple virtual networks. This means that operators will be able to deliver the right slice of network by creating priorities, depending on how it is being used, and thereby better manage their networks. This means, for example, that an operator will be able to use different slice capacities depending on the requirements of its specific consumers. So, a single user streaming a video would use a different slice, while more complex and demanding applications such as controlling autonomous vehicles will be using a different slice. This feature will be significantly economical to operators as it will give them more command over their network spread and usability.
Is 5G only about surfing speed?
While majority of us are concerned with the surfing speeds offered to us on our mobile devices for our daily browsing and surfing needs, 5G aims at a larger and more specific role. 5G internet will render revolution to a wide range of products, services and industries. While the technology will obviously offer performance increases for mobile technology, it adds to a number of other applications.
Advanced vehicle-to-vehicle communication:
In-vehicle communications will comprise a major part of the picture as next-generation communications should allow vehicle-to-vehicle communication. This will let vehicles communicate with each other to share information on speed and location so that drivers can be more aware of what is happening around them and can adapt their driving accordingly. Adding to this, the vehicles will also be able to connect to nearby establishments, such as buildings, traffic lights and even the roads themselves. This data could enable traffic lights to react to traffic flow to reduce congestion, roads in need of repair could be easily identified and the use of this technology could finally herald fully autonomous vehicles. Meanwhile, connectivity of road infrastructure can help monitor traffic flow and raise alerts for potential issues such as debris on the road.
Benefits to the Business:
While the consumer benefits of faster, reliable connection and lower latency are evident, 5G will also deliver some genuine benefits for business. 5G will offer improved remote working possibilities for employees, in turn saving time and becoming more productive as there will be less need for travel. The new smart factory models will enable more automation, which will not only lower costs but should also improve product quality by eliminating the scope for human error. These smart factories will also be able to offer flexibility around customised products to meet demand quickly, efficiently, and cost-effectively. 5G internet will allow for the automation of logistics, material handling and factory automation via wireless technology and machine-to-machine communication. This communication, coupled with the increased automation afforded by 5G, would allow everything from material deliveries, through production and warehousing and the delivery of finished products to be controlled and monitored remotely.
Medical advancements:
Biology and technology have always been two faces of the same coin. While both differ in their applications, they are both dependable. The new inventions in technologies has always boosted applications in medical sciences and affiliated fields. The most evident advancements owing to 5G internet will be use of telesurgery.
Telesurgery is the ability for a doctor to perform surgery on a patient even though they are not physically in the same location. It is a version of telepresence. A robot surgical system generally consists of one or more arms (controlled by the surgeon), a master controller (console), and a sensory system giving feedback to the user. Remote surgery combines elements of robotics, cutting-edge communication technology such as high-speed data connections and elements of management information systems. While the field of robotic surgery is fairly well established, most of these robots are controlled by surgeons at the location of the surgery instead of being remotely controlled. It essentially is advanced telecommuting for surgeons, where the physical distance between the surgeon and the patient is less relevant. It promises to allow the expertise of specialized surgeons to be available to patients worldwide, without the need for patients to travel beyond their local hospital. This therefore will ease out the overall procedure for the patient and well the surgeon and also, break the barriers of distance.
The ongoing debate:
With all the assets being mentioned about the new 5G internet technology, the negative trails must also be mentioned. The 5G internet will be using waves which had not been employed as of yet. 5G works by using higher frequencies on the electromagnetic spectrum. The frequencies range from 3.5 gigahertz (GHz) to several tens of GHz. Before 5G was launched, these higher frequencies weren’t used in mobile networks. They are typically used in devices like security scanners. However, there hasn’t been enough research on the subject to claim for any strong scientific explanation to the proposed claims or negative impacts. There is more research on the health effects of generalised electromagnetic fields across the spectrum. To mention a few of them:
Tissue Heating:
A small study conducted in 2017 showed that mobile phones use frequencies of 1.8 to 2.2 GHz. These frequencies are reported to cause tissue heating, according to WHO. Tissue heating occurs when our skin absorbs electromagnetic energy of different or specific wavelengths. This in turn causes a slight increase in temperature of our brain and body.
Another study conducted in 2021 found that people experience more EMF-related tissue heating as they get older. Additionally, the higher the value of EMFs, the more they absorb. This is primar because older individuals tend to have reduced skin thickness and blood flow. However, tissue heating is considered to be short-term and minimal. More research is necessary to determine how 5G specifically affects human tissue.
Cancer:
In 2011, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) stated that EMFs are possibly carcinogenic to humans. The classification was determined by research of 30 scientists from 14 countries. To date, most studies have examined the potential link between EMFs and brain cancer. The results, however have majorly been inconsistent. For example, a 2017 research review found that EMF radiation from mobile phones are associated with glioma, a type of brain cancer. A 2018 study, on the other hand, did not find a clear association between high frequency EMFs and occurrence of brain tumors. Again, more studies are needed to determine if 5G frequency can contribute to cancer development.
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In a very small span of time, technology has taken wings on large scale in every field. Although, the advancement in Artificial Intelligence is remarkable, the age of work is coming to an end. With every advancing step into the field of technology, we are also proceeding towards the smaller fragments of destruction of this world. We all have witnessed the sci-fi concepts of fiction movies, which shows how AI has the capability to transform our future and the world as well. While the newer resources and the availability of technology does ensure us more versatility, it takes away a part of the nature. The replacement of humans with robots and machines seems to be approaching the edge of era. Its also generally said that everything comes at a cost of something. But the ‘something’ must not be your health. However, the researches performed till date have not presented any evidence of the direct impacts of 5G network on human health, they do indicate of its flaws.
References: Qualcomm official, Cable.co.uk official Also read.