5G

5G is the fifth and current generation of cellular network technology and the successor to 4G. In common commercial use, the term refers primarily to mobile networks based on the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) 5G system and its New Radio (NR) air interface, which were first specified in 3GPP Release 15. 5G was developed to meet the International Telecommunication Union's IMT-2020 framework for fifth-generation mobile systems. Large-scale commercial deployments began in 2019, including South Korea's national 5G rollout. 5G networks may be deployed in non-standalone mode, using existing LTE core-network infrastructure, or in standalone mode with a dedicated 5G Core.

Like earlier cellular systems, 5G networks divide service areas into smaller zones called cells, which are served by fixed cell sites. Compatible devices connect by radio to local base stations, which are linked to an operator's core network and to external networks such as the Internet through backhaul connections. 5G can be deployed using low-band, mid-band, and high-band radio spectrum, with coverage and performance depending heavily on the frequencies used, network design, congestion, and device capabilities.

Compared with 4G, 5G is designed to provide higher data rates, greater network capacity, lower latency, improved support for dense device deployments, and more flexible network management. For IMT-2020 radio-interface evaluation, the ITU specified peak data-rate requirements of 20 Gbit/s downlink and 10 Gbit/s uplink under ideal conditions, as well as latency and connection-density targets for enhanced mobile broadband, ultra-reliable low-latency communications, and massive machine-type communications. Actual user speeds are typically much lower than peak values and vary by operator, location, spectrum band, signal quality, and network load.