Hey morbo I'm not afraid of 5g I just have some questions about the technology.
If WiMax is 110ghz what is 5g in ghz?
If WiMax covers 40sq miles what does 5g cover?
How is 5g different from 4g?
Is 5g really useful/better or is it mostly a marketing scam?
It's been a while since I looked at the WiMAX specifications, but I was wrong on the top end. WiMAX 802.16 tops out at 66 GHz instead of 110 GHz. Not sure what I was confusing it with outside of some space communications bands. Anyway, so WiMAX 802.16 variants range from 2 GHz to 66 GHz. The 5G cellular technology is broken into two bands. The first band is between 450 MHz to 6 GHz and the second band is between 24.25 GHz to 52.6 GHz. The top end is below the WiMAX top end. Right now only the lower 5G band is being used because they are filling out the extra frequency groups gained from shutting down the old analog TV broadcasting. The high frequency version of 5G is for short distance communications and the lower frequency band is for longer distance communications. People are afraid of the higher frequency bands, but WiMAX and other technologies have been using those frequencies for quite some time. The coverage area for 5G depends on the frequencies used. The higher the frequency, the smaller the area it can cover. Low frequencies go far, much like the sound of bass carries farther than treble.
So what's the difference between 4G and 5G? The number and "G" represents the generation of the cellular technology. It has nothing to do with the frequencies used or the way the signals are created and processed. It's simply a marker of time for a given technology. The 4G tech has some of its frequencies above the low band 5G, with most 4G operating in the 700 - 900 MHz bands. There are some higher frequencies used by 4G such as the 1.2 - 1.5 GHz bands. As with 5G, the bands determine the area of coverage. Higher frequencies need more towers closer together to provide good coverage.
What's the scam? A lot of marketing but also a lot more spectrum. Cell phone providers fight for spectrum. They need more of it to service more customers and with more advanced features. High frequencies can move a lot more data than low frequencies, but they can't do it over a long range. They need to use both to cover near and far, fast and slow. None of this is really new or groundbreaking. It's just like the differences between a 4 cylinder engine and a 6 cylinder engine. They both have their advantages and disadvantages, but marketing makes them both look great to consumers. The real goal of 5G (or 4G or 6G) is simply make more money. It's always that simple, just like with cars.
Thanks.
So ham radio must be super low frequencies to travel across continents. It makes sense.
Have you heard these stories where people can use repeaters like other wireless technologies in a home to ping and create 3d images of everything.
If thats true, outside of extremely controled environments, how practical would that be to apply in every day applications?
Have you heard these stories where people can use repeaters like other wireless technologies in a home to ping and create 3d images of everything.
Yes it is possible, but it's also impractical. Radar uses higher frequencies the can reflect well off many objects, but it cannot give you a very detailed image of the shape of the objects. The WiFi mapping is the same. It can show you large and simple features of an object or room, but it can't give you a 3D model of a person. If that was possible, the applications for such technology would be used by many industries already. It's just like ground penetrating radar. It can tell you something is down there but it can't tell you exactly what it is. It would be amazing if it could, but the technology is always way behind the imagined possibilities. But...we do already use extremely high frequencies to make detailed 3D images possible. Light can do that and it has very good detail. We use it all the time and no one seems to be afraid of it. :)
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