Poll: Wi-Fi has Gotten Better. Do You Really Need 5G?

Most of what I have read says that 5G is mostly for B2B applications, not end users.

So I find it hard to get real enthusiastic about it.

DAB

I don't trust driving cars.

Frankly, I'm very critical towards AIs, even more so if they are sentinent.

If you get in a taxi, you trust the driver not to get into an accident.

But the driver knows this, the driver can make quick decisions on the spot.

Robots, they obey by an algorithm.

The algorithm that is definitely buggy.

And to remove those bugs, cars get into accidents, and people die.

Interesting to see the broad consensus here.

I've never been impressed by the arguments for 5G (and it's not really a single discrete thing anyway.)

All this stuff about it being essential for driverless cars is madness, how could you possibly entrust safety critical functions to wireless ?

And to make it worse 5G is almost line of sight wireless.

I think it'll go the way of 3D telly and Quadraphonic audio.

MK

I don't really use wired connections anymore, perhaps because the ethernet ports are on one side of the room and the computer is on the other, WiFi works pretty nice, but I understand that wired is better.

As Hugo indicates, 5G may be more of a competitor for 4G than Wi-Fi, but I still far prefer fiber. It is just so much healthier and much higher bandwidth to boot. I prefer any solution that decreases RF pollution.

We honestly don't need 5G, not for majority of people. 4G LTE is already blazing fast.

What will 5G do, then?

5G will burn through your monthly data much faster, it's going to be more expensive, etc.

Use wifi whenever possible, and 4G LTE is almost the same.

5G and new wifi6 work in different bandwidth and totally different tech.

In some places 5G spectrum is occupied by other authority like weather satellite , no way to be used widely,

The question should probably be, does the mass market need high bandwidth and low latency while on the move.

I cannot see a use case for this requirement other than maybe for public and private transport.

Otherwise WiFi should win as a 5G substitute as it doesn't have high licensing costs etc. for an operator to supply the service and it delivers the same outcome on a phone for the end user.

I always thought that cellular is used for WAN and WiFi for LAN networks (with minor exceptions) - completely different use cases.

Isn't the whole point of 5G that it's a mobile technology - i.e. you'd use it when you're not at home / work / coffee shop. I don't see that WiFi and 5G are really competing - unless you felt that 5G makes WiFi unnecessary.