We are inside the experience center of Nokia’s global headquarters here in Finland,
and we’re going to get a first-hand look at how 5G works.
5G is the fifth generation of wireless technology.
It’s a new cellular network designed to increase speed, improve connectivity and decrease latency,
which is the time it takes for one device to send data to another.
Telecommunications companies like Nokia say 5G is about
more than faster download speeds on your phone.
It could help autonomous cars communicate almost instantly on the road
or connect devices seamlessly around your home.
Nokia showed us in one demo how 5G could help machines perform skills,
in this case balancing a ball, faster than ever.
So if we try first with a 4G latency, and we start the balance now.
About five, six seconds.
If we ask it to balance with it in 5G mode,
usually they're able to complete that synchronization within a couple of seconds.
So it’s quite a bit faster.
If you’re thinking about robots that are working in industry,
that translates to production time, that translates to money.
That’s why 5G is big business for Nokia.
The Finnish company was once the world’s top mobile phone seller,
and it sees 5G as an opportunity to be a leader in mobile communications again.
5G is the next generation of communications.
Not just the radio but everything from two ends of the world to another end of the world.
So you can’t be a communications company without at least being on the radar with 5G here?
I think that 5G is something which will touch everybody’s lives in a few years from now.
Nokia’s efforts have helped put Finland on the map in the worldwide race to develop 5G.
In January, it will become one of the first countries to allow operators to launch 5G commercial networks.
One of those operators is Swedish communications company Telia.
We are a nation that adopts new technologies very easily.
Do you think that Finland could compete with a country like the U.S. or China?
In the business volume, maybe not, but in the agility, in the speed, for sure.
5G also means more data. We are inside to Finland’s largest open data center
which is preparing for an influx of data as 5G gets more popular here.
You need to have that data center close enough that you can send some data back to the users.
So proximity is more important than ever?
It is.
From data centers to fiber-optic cables and cell towers,
companies are pumping a lot of money into 5G infrastructure.
But there are concerns the technology is developing too fast for regulators to keep up.
By 2025, it’s estimated nearly half of mobile connections in North America will be with 5G.
Some say all those cellular connections could increase the risk of harm from radiation.
And security is another concern as several countries have blocked Chinese 5G operators,
out of fear they will enable China to spy on citizens.
Nokia told me it’s taking serious security measures
when it comes to producing 5G technology like routers, software and radios.
We are now connecting not just the people but the whole world
and we don’t want the infrastructure to fail because of some security issues.
So those risks we have taken very seriously.
And I understand why some governments and people are concerned.
Still, 5G adoption won’t happen overnight.
Even if 5G networks are up and running in countries like here in Finland,
a lot of our hardware isn’t enabled for 5G yet.
So that means it could be a while before consumers use 5G every day.
Hey everyone, Elizabeth here. Thanks so much for watching our reports from Finland.
Let us know if you have any other ideas in the comments section.
Check out all of our other videos over here. See you later!