Millimeter waves are absorbed by gases in the atmosphere and have shorter range than microwaves, therefore the

cells
are limited to smaller size; 5G cells will be the size of a city block, as opposed to the cells in previous cellular networks
which could be many kilometers across. The waves also have trouble passing through building walls, requiring
multiple antennas to cover a cell.[7] Millimeter wave antennas are smaller than the large antennas used in previous
cellular networks, only a few inches (several cm) long, so instead of a cell tower 5G cells will be covered by many
antennas mounted on telephone poles and buildings.[8] Another technique used for increasing the data rate is massive
MIMO (multiple-input multiple-output).[7] Each cell will have multiple antennas communicating with the wireless
device, each over a separate frequency channel, received by multiple antennas in the device, thus multiple bitstreams
of data will be transmitted simultaneously, in parallel. In a technique called beamforming the base station computer
will continuously calculate the best route for radio waves to reach each wireless device, and will organise multiple
antennas to work together as phased arrays to create beams of millimeter waves to reach the device.[7][8] The smaller,
more numerous cells makes 5G network infrastructure more expensive to build per square kilometer of coverage than
previous cellular networks. Deployment is currently limited to cities, where there will be enough users per cell to
provide an adequate investment return, and there are doubts about whether this technology will ever reach rural
areas.[7]

The new 5G wireless devices also have 4G LTE capability, as the new networks use 4G for initially establishing the
connection with the cell, as well as in locations where 5G access is not available.[9]

The high data rate and low latency of 5G are envisioned as opening up new applications in the near future.[9] One is
practical virtual reality and augmented reality. Another is fast machine-to-machine interaction in the Internet of
Things. For example, computers in vehicles on a road could continuously communicate with each other, and with the
road, via 5G.[9]

Performance targets
The 5G systems in line with IMT-2020 specifications[10] are expected to provide enhanced device and network-level
capabilities, tightly coupled with intended applications. The following eight parameters are key capabilities for IMT-
2020 5G:

5G
Usage
Capability Description 5G target
scenario
Peak data rate Maximum achievable data rate 20 Gbit/s eMBB
Achievable data rate across the coverage area (hotspot
User experienced 1 Gbit/s eMBB
cases)
data rate
Achievable data rate across the coverage area 100 Mbit/s eMBB
Latency Radio network contribution to packet travel time 1 ms URLLC
Mobility Maximum speed for handoff and QoS requirements 500 km/h eMBB/URLLC

Connection density Total number of devices per unit area 106/km2 MMTC

Data sent/received per unit energy consumption (by

Energy efficiency Equal to 4G eMBB
device or network)
1000
Area traffic capacity Total traffic across coverage area eMBB
(Mbit/s)/m2

Throughput per unit wireless bandwidth and per network

Spectrum efficiency 3–4x 4G eMBB
cell
Note that, for 5G NR, according to 3GPP specification when using a spectrum below 6 GHz, the performance would be
closer to 4G.

Usage scenario
ITU-R have defined three main types of usage scenario that the capability of 5G is expected to enable. They are
Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communications (URLLC), and Massive Machine
Type Communications (mMTC).[11]

Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB)

Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) refers to the use case of using 5G as an evolution to 4G LTE mobile broadband
services with faster connection with higher throughput and more capacity. 5G would need to deliver higher capacity,
enhance connectivity, and higher user mobility to match these demands, which would require capabilities in the above
table with eMBB mark to deliver.[12]

Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communications (URLLC)

Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communications (URLLC) refers to the use case of 5G in mission-critical applications
such as factory automation, where uninterrupted and robust exchange of data is of the utmost importance.

Massive Machine Type Communications (mMTC)

Massive Machine-Type Communications (mMTC) refers to the wide area IoT use cases consisting of large numbers of
low-cost devices with high requirements on scalability and increased battery lifetime.

Advantages

Speed
5G promises superior speeds in most conditions to the 4G network. Qualcomm presented a simulation at Mobile
World Congress[13][14][15] that predicts 490 Mbit/s median speeds for 3.5 GHz 5G Massive MIMO and 1.4 Gbit/s
median speed for 28 GHz mmWave.[16] 5G NR speed in sub-6 GHz bands can be slightly higher than the 4G with a
similar amount of spectrum and antennas,[17][18] though some 3GPP 5G networks will be slower than some advanced
4G networks, such as T-Mobile's LTE/LAA network, which achieves 500+ Mbit/s in Manhattan.[19]

The 5G specification allows LAA (License Assisted Access) as well but it has not yet been demonstrated. Adding LAA to
an existing 4G configuration can add hundreds of megabits per second to the speed, but this is an extension of 4G, not
a new part of the 5G standard.[19]

Low communication latency

Network latency is the time it takes to pass a message from sender to receiver.[20] 5G will have much lower latency
than previous cellular networks; below 1 millisecond, compared with 30 - 70 ms for 4G.[8]

New use cases

Features of 5G network, including extreme high bandwidth, ultra low latency, and high density connections, are
expected to enable many new use cases that are impossible to be done via older network standards.[21] (See Usage
scenario) 5G can also increase the effectiveness of ecommerce vendors' activities.[22]