Fifth-generation (5G) speeds of 1Tbps have been achieved by researchers at the University of Surrey in the UK and could be publicly demonstrated by 2018.
The speeds far outstrip the 7.5Gbps achieved in tests by tech giant Samsung.
The 1Tbps speeds were achieved by the 5G Innovation Centre (5GIC) at the University of Surrey.
According to V3, the university plans to trial the technology across its campus during 2016 and 2017 ahead of a more public demonstration in 2018.
“This is the same capacity as fibre optics but we are doing it wirelessly,” explained Prof Rahim Tafazolli, director of the 5G Innovation Centre.
The researchers wish to demonstrate the technology to the public ahead of rivals in Korea, China and Russia.
While the speeds are remarkable, the key point about 5G will be latency and reliability, as the technology is going to be the wireless standard for at least the next 20 years.
“An important aspect of 5G is how it will support applications in the future. We don’t know what applications will be in use by 2020, or 2030 or 2040 for that matter, but we know they will be highly sensitive to latency,” Tafazolli said.
Wireless networking image via Shutterstock
