5G Smartphones Are Launching With No Sign Of 5G Network In India: Should You Buy One?

Since the turn of the new year, 5G connectivity has been a big talking point among the smartphone industry lately. The same can be observed with the recent smartphone launches taking place. Samsung rolled out its Galaxy S20 range of three smartphones, all supporting a 5G bandwidth. Apple is set to do the same with its September launch event for the next series of iPhones.

A similar story is unfolding in India too. Realme, a budget smartphone manufacturer in the country, is soon to come up with its 5G compatible X50 Pro within this month. Vivo is expected to follow up with its IQOO smartphone.

With both the companies eyeing to be the first-bringers of 5G compatible devices in India, does it make sense for the Indian smartphone user to opt for such smartphones right now? Or should we first wait for a new-age telecom setup that will make such devices inevitable in the near future? Here is a look at both the arguments related to 5G connectivity in India.

Understanding 5G

As an evolution to 4G connectivity, 5G is a mobile network that promises faster data transfer speeds than 4G with lower latency rates and higher throughput for more active connections simultaneously.

When we say ¡°faster¡±, it is not by a matter of 10 or 20 percent. 5G comes as the first wireless network capable of reaching Gbps of transfer speeds. This is because 5G works in an ecosystem of low, mid and millimetre bands of spectrum.

The millimetre wave frequency, i.e. the spectrum above the 24GHz band provides extremely fast data transfers but is prone to distortion. In comparison, the low frequency band in the sub-1GHz spectrum offers stability and consistency over large areas. The mid-band frequency (between 1GHz and 6GHz spectrum bands) provides a balanced mix of the two.

For working in all the three spectrums, the 5G network supports an adaptive beam-switching technology. Unique to the network, this technology helps the connected devices to seamlessly switch from one band to another while staying connected to the network.

So as the global network operators vouch for 5G connectivity for the next era, why is it not very viable for India as of now?

(Representative Image: Reuters)

The spectrum trouble

5G services hugely rely on the spectrum for their optimum working. In India, there is still an ongoing struggle for such spctrum for the telecom operators. A report by Business Standard explains that the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has identified 35 MHz of spectrum in the 700MHz frequency band and another 300 MHz of spectrum in the midrange band of 3.3GHz to 3.6GHz.

The available spectrums are under demand by various entities, including defence, railway as well as space departments. So the available spectrum band for the telecom operators to work upon is not very desirable at the moment, resulting in the lack of interest in 5G rollout.

Required investment

This limited bandwidth is being auctioned off to the telecom operators at very steep rates. At least that is what the top telcos executives have repeatedly mentioned. Chiefs of Bharti Airtel, , Vodafone Idea as well as Reliance Jio Infocomm have reportedly mentioned the prices to be too high to generate any interest from the industry players.

Moreover, establishing a nationwide 5G network would require a considerable investment in the corresponding infrastructure. Knowing how almost all the telecom operators are reeling under heavy AGR dues in the country, it is unlikely that any will be setting up such an infrastructure in the near future.

Bottomline, even though 5G smartphones have started making their way to the market, there is no sight of a 5G network rolling in the country anytime soon. So even though such smartphones are future-proof and would not experience any problem with the existing 4G networks, it might just not be the right time to invest in them if they cost even a bit extra for the 5G capabilities.

(Representative Image: Reuters)

Privacy concerns

Since a 5G network is able to connect to multiple devices without any drop in the data transfer speeds, a major reason for its use is to operate smart and connected devices as a part of an Internet of Things (IoT) ecosystem.

As more and more such devices join the network, the corresponding data collected by them needs a safety assurance from potential exploits. As a software-backed network, it might enable hackers to extract critical information from such devices through network-led entry points.

That means that a 5G network as a whole should be secured end-to-end. So along with an efficient rollout of a 5G network on the ground-level, a back-end cyber security would also be necessary for a nationwide use of the network. Such a level of cyber-security is not yet being pursued in the country and is expected to delay the entry of the 5G network in India even further.

Not the right time?

So as 5G devices rollout in India one after the other (expecting other smartphone OEMs to follow), spending any extra buck on them does not really make sense as of now. It is easy to see that there is no use to have a 5G compatible device today if the network is expected to arrive only after two more years.

Then again, the argument stands that there is no harm in opting for such devices as they are backed by the top-of-the-line hardware and a future-ready technology. Just as long as they are not adding to your expense, don't buy a 5G phone just for its 5G capabilities and you won't be disappointed.