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Jyith t1_j20d6kb wrote

Reply to comment by xal1124 in A new novel antenna bringing us closer to 6G wireless communications by Vailhem

Well, it's a simplification, but yes. All different generations are just different frequencies. And the borders between them are mostly arbitrary.

The G after the number just means "generation", by the way (5G being the 5th generation of telecommunication networks).

There are international groups that declare the "official" criteria for every generation, and seems that usually they are just expansions on the frequencies of the previous generation - with some speed, latency, bandwidth and coverage requirements tacked on top.

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xal1124 t1_j20f02z wrote

Why are there huge changes to the core network and to the physical layer between 4G and 5G then? Aside from some changes to support millimeter wave, the difference should be minimal, if you are correct.

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Jyith t1_j20iiws wrote

Because of the frequency? Obviously, if the range of even the mid-band 5G is a fraction of 4G, you need to build a lot more cell towers. And you know where that 4G, 5G and future 6G data travels the majority of the time? In the same fiber-optic cables as everything else. Operators need to build the cables all the way up to the 5G towers. And as far as I'm aware, the 5G towers don't generally communicate with each other.

Also, the core network needs to be fast enough to accommodate increased traffic. More undersea cables between continents, more underground cables within countries.

So no, the difference in infrastructure is obviously not minimal.

There are probably tons more nuances. Like I said, I'm not an expert.

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