1.Replace Expensive Wired Cable with Highly Reliable Cellular Connections
Building and maintaining wired connections is both labor intensive and expensive. Until now, however, many organizations chose wired over wireless connectivity because wired connections offered superior reliability and uptime in the absence of comparable wireless options. As 5G coverage increases and in the advent of private 5G networks, “cutting the cable” with cellular 5G business routers will be the preferred option in an increasing number of business applications. As a result, companies can expect to see faster time-to-value from their IoT initiatives, greater opportunity to eliminate costly wired installation and maintenance, and increase network uptime and resilience.
2.Improve Data Transmission Speed
Data transmission speeds are exponentially higher with 5G, compared to 4G LTE. For example, while 4G is typically capable of delivering speeds of up to 100 Mbps, 5G promises speeds of 1 Gbps or more, in some cases achieving multi-gigabit speeds in large venues and in city centers. The primary benefit of 5G’s higher speed, however, is not in time savings but in the much greater volume of data that networks can carry over the same amount of bandwidth with 5G. This dramatically increases the practicality of applying analytical processing or even AI to all that data.
While this is good news for consumers, it’s an even bigger advantage for industrial applications, such as factory automation in the era of Industry 4.0. As technologies like ML and AI continue to advance, downloading the volumes of data produced will require faster and more flexible networks to achieve the desired results. 5G makes that possible.
3.Lower Latency Enables Business Improvements
Latency refers to the amount of time that elapses from the moment that data is sent to the moment it is received. Latency is responsible for the delays we sometimes experience in phone calls or video conferences. The ultra-low latency that is possible with 5G communication is essential in a variety of applications, for example, in autonomous vehicles, where saving critical milliseconds is a matter of life or death. Reducing latency makes autonomous vehicles safe enough to be practical by enabling virtually instantaneous communication between vehicles on the road, as well as between vehicles, traffic signals and intersections.
In industries with operations at remote worksites, low latency 5G connections allow companies to maintain a high level of service and worker safety, while increasing time reducing time to resolution and operational cost. For example, a new technician on a job could be directly supervised and instructed by a top professional via augmented reality (AR) or virtual reality (VR) without the added expense of sending the expert out to the-site.
4.Increase Device Capacity
Network device capacity on 4G networks is a fraction of what 5G can handle; think one million devices, wearables and sensors on 5G versus 1,000 on 4G, and you’ll have some idea of the scope. The added capacity that 5G for business offers enables companies to scale their IoT deployments like never before. 5G for business offers better reliability and insights that would not be possible using previous wireless network technologies.
5.Enable New Business Models
Innovation is fueled with 5G, providing a solid foundation for capabilities like remote surgery in hospitals and remote applications for various other forms of highly skilled work. Wearable technology will find new markets in health and fitness. And automation will expand into any number of new safety and convenience product features.
These are just some of the avenues for innovation offered by 5G that will positively impact our way of life and the livelihoods of generations to come.
Industries that Will Benefit from 5G Devices
Manufacturing and light industrial: Smart factories will greatly expand the number of sensors used to monitor every aspect of the manufacturing process. 5G makes it possible to monitor more performance parameters along the assembly line, collecting more granular information about the performance of machines and processes. With the aid of ML and AI, 5G networks will enable constant incremental refinement, improving quality and productivity and lowering costs.
Healthcare: When an ambulance is called, every second counts. With 5G, hospital doctors can work with field paramedics to diagnose the patient before and during transport, using high-resolution video and patient telemetry, saving precious time and in some cases lives. In addition, with 5G, telehealth services can be expanded, especially into rural areas.
Retail: 5G technology can be used to expand the use of mobile apps and enable new services that will attract customers, such as the ability to “try on” clothes using VR and AR dressing rooms. 5G’s high-speed, high-volume flow of information makes it possible to offer more personalized services to retail customers. IoT sensors can also be used to aid in restocking and tracking the flow of inventory.
Traffic management: 5G traffic management technologies can provide enormous benefits to the public in terms of safety and convenience. FirstNet Ready™ IoT solutions provide priority communications for emergency vehicles and first responders, while IoT applications help to speed and smooth traffic flow and increase productivity by reducing the amount of time people waste in traffic daily. And as electric vehicles (EVs) and smart cities get equipped with 5G-based vehicle-to-everything (V2X) technology, traffic accidents and fatalities will be reduced.
Transit: 5G connectivity enables improvements in several areas of public transit. Transactional data for payment and ticketing, as well as real-time information on vehicle capacity, scheduling and routing can all be transmitted more efficiently and in greater detail. 5G networks can also carry large volumes of performance and operational data, plus streaming digital signage and passenger Wi-Fi services.
Work from home: Whether business enterprises have adopted a hybrid or a full remote working model, keeping networks secure has become an even larger challenge. Drop-in 5G routers today can provide managed, commercial-level connectivity and security for work-from-home employees with the help of 5G connectivity for the home office. 5G capabilities can benefit companies and employees in a variety of remote work scenarios for a distributed workforce.