What will 6G look like?
It’s hard to say what 6G will look like—after all, it doesn’t exist yet. But in media interviews and research papers, wireless companies and academics describe 6G as a fully integrated, internet-based system that allows for instantaneous communications between consumers, devices, vehicles, and the surrounding environment.1,2
Right now, we have the Internet of Things (IoT) with smartphones and smart home devices. Eventually we could arrive at an all-encompassing Internet of Everything. But that will depend on future developments like 6G (or whatever it will be called) and how it works.
Here’s a rundown of what experts are talking about when they talk about 6G:
1 Tbps speeds
Some experts believe that 6G networks could one day allow you to hit max speeds of one terabit per second (Tbps) on an internet device.3
That’s a thousand times faster than 1 Gbps, the fastest speed available on most home internet networks today. It’s 100 times faster than 10 Gbps, the hypothetical top speed of 5G. So, yeah, it’s a rosy guesstimate, and we are a long way off from achieving those speeds.
Fundamentally, though, researchers predict that 6G will place an emphasis on extremely high bandwidth and reliability. On 6G, internet will be instantly and continuously accessible, woven for many of us into the tapestry of everyday life.1
Terahertz waves
In 2019, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) opened the gates to a potential 6G future by allowing companies to begin experimenting with what’s being called “terahertz waves” or “submillimeter waves.” These are radio bands that fall in the spectrum of 95GHz to 3THz (terahertz).
Terahertz waves come at a higher frequency than millimeter waves, which today are being touted as a kind of Holy Grail solution to network congestion and bandwidth limitations. Advanced versions of 5G depend on millimeter wave bands to carry vast amounts of data at ultrafast speeds with minimal response time, making it (theoretically) possible to develop things like automated cars and remote surgeries.
The catch is that millimeter waves work only over short distances, requiring a “line of sight” between the transmitter and the user. And terahertz waves have even weaker range. But if they can be properly harnessed with some novel networking approaches, it can open up even more capacity for doing sophisticated, Jetsons–esque activities over a 6G wireless network.
Artificial intelligence and edge computing
Automated cars and drones, remote-controlled factories, and other uses of artificial intelligence (AI) have been getting a lot of discussion amid the rise of 5G. The advent of 6G is expected to make this even more of a thing—and some experts think artificial intelligence will be required to keep it all coordinated and running smoothly.
Razvan-Andrei Stoica and Giuseppe Abreu, two researchers at Jacobs University in Bremen, Germany, said that 6G could rely on “collaborative AI” to help self-driving cars communicate with each other, navigate pedestrians and traffic, and determine the best routes from here to there.
It’s part of an emerging trend called “edge computing,” which moves network management away from centralized clouds towards more localized devices, making everything work way smoother and reducing response times.
Another 6G acolyte, Roberto Saracco at the European Institute of Innovation & Technology, suggested that things like AI and edge computing could help devices themselves become network antennas—maintaining your Wi-Fi connection in a fluid, ever-shifting ballet of users and their devices.
Immersive technologies
Virtual reality is expected to play a big role in 5G. But this is just the beginning. In the 6G era years from now, some experts imagine the emergence of even more immersive technologies, such as cellular surfaces, connected implants, and “wireless brain-computer interfaces” (!!!).
Walid Saad, a faculty member at Virginia Tech and the lead author of a July 2019 white paper on 6G, predicts that smartphones will eventually fall to the wayside in favor of smart wearables, headsets, and implants “that can take direct sensory inputs from human senses.”
The Japanese mobile company NTT DoCoMo envisions a complete fusion of physical life and cyberspace: “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.”
Keep in mind—wireless technology evolves slower than you expect
Interestingly, even though we now have 5G, a lot of cell phone companies haven’t even met international 4G benchmarks yet. These days many networks have what’s called 4G LTE, or long-term evolution. The term sounds like deluxe 4G, but it’s actually a slower version of 4G.
When international regulators first set 4G standards in 2008, they were estimating that 4G technology could achieve very fast speeds—100 Mbps for “high-mobility communication” (like using data a phone while riding in a car) and 1,000 Mbps for “low-mobility communication” (like hotspots used at home).
But those estimates never panned out. Today, mobile devices on 4G LTE networks hit average download speeds of just 41.9 Mbps4. That just goes to show that technology evolves slowly and nothing is set in stone for 6G yet.
Author - Peter Holslin
Peter Holslin has more than a decade of experience working as a writer and freelance journalist. He graduated with a BA in liberal arts and journalism from New York City’s The New School University in 2008 and went on to contribute to publications like Rolling Stone, VICE, BuzzFeed, and countless others. At HighSpeedInternet.com, he focuses on covering 5G, nerding out about frequency bands and virtual RAN, and producing reviews on emerging services like 5G home internet. He also writes about internet providers and packages, hotspots, VPNs, and Wi-Fi troubleshooting.
Editor - Cara Haynes
Cara Haynes has been editing and writing in the digital space for seven years, and she's edited all things internet for HighSpeedInternet.com for five years. She graduated with a BA in English and a minor in editing from Brigham Young University. When she's not editing, she makes tech accessible through her freelance writing for brands like Pluralsight. She believes no one should feel lost in internet land and that a good internet connection significantly extends your life span.
