5G technology demands could cause a data revolution
After several years of waiting, 5G is finally in trial mode and already changing the accessibility, speed and latency of our personal data as we know it. Although many of the anticipated use cases of 5G are not expected to go mainstream for another two to three years, with an increase in bandwidth and speed, data is only going to become more and more important – and fast.
The future of 5G could drastically change the way businesses and even individuals look at their data. Data services are slowly evolving to cater to consumers, utilizing data for health and fitness, finances, digital interactions, and more. We are now in a position to make both major and marginal gains to our lives, just by paying attention to our personal data. With the shift in speed and accessibility that 5G brings, the possibilities are endless for what consumers could do with their data.
There’s been an evolution in how we as individuals have used data since the inception of 3G. Going live in 1998, 3G offered great promise of what consumers could expect. The phones were advertised as being able to access the internet, make video calls and they even had color screens. But in reality, the internet access was painfully slow, video calling worked very minimally, and color photo sharing was slow (but still fun). Unfortunately, 3G never lived up to its promise, and we had to wait until 2008, when 4G hit the market, to see real gains.
The new world, speed and accessibility of 4G got us hooked on our phones, and we marveled at the capabilities and data at our fingertips. The era of social media and constant connection kicked off, and consumers’ expectations of “now” and customer service as well as our needs changed.
While living in a 4G connected world has been exciting and even life altering, consumer demands have further shifted. More people are loading the network, and our once believed nirvana of instant access has started to feel slow. The promise of 5G is calling to us. It isn’t just the ability to connect 500 times the number of devices per square kilometer that’s exciting about 5G.
Other benefits like significantly decreased latency will transform the way we work. Just looking at autonomous vehicles, for example, a latency of 1 millisecond means that data can be shared between cars travelling at 70 miles per hour in 31 millimeters. Super high speed wireless broadband and smart cities are also on the 5G agenda, as it seeds a brand new way of thinking. With an increase in bandwidth and speed, data is only going to become more and more important to people.
To deliver on these promises, we need to prepare. With 5G, there will be an influx of data, and enterprises need to update their infrastructure to maximize data capture and get the most out of the increased connectivity. We’re already seeing many organizations move to the cloud because of its benefits of scalability and flexibility that on-premises solutions can’t offer. Currently, migrating to the cloud is still a choice. However, 5G and the new demands from data will make the move to the cloud a necessity.
Data is fast becoming our most valuable commodity.
