We’ve seen 3G, 4G, and now 5G rolling out, at least in the developed world. Some random stats:
- About a third of North American mobile traffic is via 5G
- 95% of Singapore is covered by 5G
- By 2026, 90% of South Korean mobile traffic will be 5G
- 90% of Germany is covered by 5G
Etcetera. 5G is a success.
So naturally people are think about 6G.
Of course, it doesn’t exist yet. To quote Wikipedia: “As of 2023, there is no universally-accepted government or non-government standard for what qualifies as 6G technology and it is still in the early stage of development.”
But here’s some wild quotes on what to expect:
Marcus Weldon, president of Nokia Bell Labs: “What it really comes down to is mixing the physical world…the digital world–software systems, AI systems, and biological systems. You mix those together in real time. I have a permanent AR overlay.”
NTT Docomo: Envisions a “cyber-physical fusion”: “Many services utilizing cyber-physical fusion will be created in the 2020s and will be used practically in all environments, but more advanced cyber-physical fusion will be required in the 2030s. By transmitting and processing a large amount of information between cyberspace and physical space without delay, tighter cooperation between both spaces will be achieved, and ultimately, fusion without a gap between the spaces will be actualized. For humans, it will become possible for cyberspace to support human thought and action in real time through wearable devices and micro- devices mounted on the human body.”
Ericsson: “Maybe I want to stay a bit longer than usual in bed this morning, and instead of needing to call for my care worker, I can simply think and my 6G-connected exoskeleton will arrive seconds later, communicated via think.”
Cyber-physical fusion? Exoskeletons? Are we still talking about a wireless network or Cyberpunk 2077?
It’s too early to hazard a guess about what 6G will really be like, but here’s some reasonable guesses:
- It’ll have faster throughput than 5G. Duh.
- It may improve latency. 5G is already pretty low-latency. 4G is 40-60ms. 5GB reduces this to less than 1ms. How much lower can we go?
- It’ll be capable of greater density. 5G supports 1 million devices per square kilometer and 6G will no doubt greatly improve upon that.
- It’ll use higher frequencies. The higher you go up the spectrum, the more data you can carry. 6G might approach terahertz speeds. (Random braindfood: check out the extreme opposite of the scale). Of course, higher frequencies mean shorter range. Sorting this out will be a key engineering challenge.
And apparently it’ll link your brain directly with your powered exoskeleton in the garage, like Iron Man. Neat.
I also enjoy using LEBs! I have an empire of little guys for VPNs, larger guys for apps, and big guys for databases and storage. When I'm not in front a screen I'm into German Shepherd dogs, quality knives, target shooting, theology, tabletop roleplaying games, and forest hiking.
I enjoy writing technical articles here on LowEndBox to help people get more out of their systems. You can find me on LowEndTalk @raindog308
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