5G: Coming to a Network Near You?

Samsung has announced a breakthrough in the development of so-called "5G" technology that would allow for speeds hundreds of times faster than current 4G networks.  But the company says the new technology would likely not be ready for widespread commercial use for a number of years.  From PCMag:

Samsung said today that it has made a breakthrough in the development of "5G" technology, which will ultimately be several hundred times faster than current 4G networks.

But don't expect to see a "5G" icon atop your mobile gadget in the near future. This is just the beginning, and Samsung said it does not expect the commercialization of the technology until at least 2020.

To make the faster, more bandwidth-intense 5G a reality, networks will need a variety of frequencies, "much like an increased water flow requires a wider pipe," Samsung said. One solution is something known as millimeter-wave bands, but at this point, it is limited to short-distance transmissions.