4G LTE? Meh. AT&T to Test 5G This Year

We’re conducting our 5G trials in such a way that we’ll be able to pivot to compliant commercial deployments once 5G technology standards are set.

What qualifies as superfast? The communications giant joins rival Verizon in exploring a network that could deliver data 100 times as fast as current 4G service known as LTE.

Referring to the megabits-per-second data speeds we get today on 4G LTE, AT&T added that “customers will see speeds measured in gigabits per second, not megabits”.

AT&T said Friday it intends to start testing next-generation 5G technology next month with faster speeds coming first to Austin, Texas.

Moreover, innovation in distributing the 5G signals efficiently should be one of the many agenda in the test. We expect the telecom operators to expand their next-gen network through fewer cell sites, maximizing reach through minimum towers – thereby saving rental costs in the process.

Not only that, but according to John Donovan, chief strategy officer of AT&T: “New experiences like virtual reality, self-driving cars, robotics, smart cities and more are about to test networks like never before”.

AT&T Inc.T has revealed its plans to field test the next-gen 5G technology.

Streaming video already accounts for the bulk of mobile traffic, and by 2020, Cisco reckons it will account for 75 percent mobile data. We exceeded our first major milestone by virtualizing 5.7% in 2015.

“What 5G will mean is that fixed wireless will become a realistic alternative or replacement for fixed Internet service, especially in rural America”, said Roger Entner, an analyst at Recon Analytics. “Television shows have so much data it would have taken forever to download a file in 3G or 2G mode”. This would make the United States the first to lead in successive generation of mobile Internet technologies.

No Need for Hard-Wired Line?

Through a collaboration with Ericsson and Intel, AT&T will be ramping up its efforts to bring 5G to market starting in the second quarter of this year.

AT&T has announced it’s going to test a 5G network, much like the one Verizon said it would test a year ago, but AT&T’s estimating much faster speeds. This is not to be confused with wireless 5G which won’t be commercially viable until around 2020 (or 2018 if you live in South Korea).

So why start 5G testing now, even though its broader adoption is so far off?

While the general public is aloof for the most part when it comes to 5G technology, there is rumbling among tech companies and countries alike, over exclusivity and availability of the service.

Who still needs 4G when 5G is already here? “It’s just the next logical step”.