So, what is 5G? Practically, it’s the successor to the current 4G cellular network - but that’s where the similarities end. 5G uses a much larger bandwidth capable of transferring incredible volumes of data much faster than 4G. That data can also be arranged and even prioritised; for example, traffic and health information will take priority over Insta pictures of your dinner. To handle this volume of information, 5G networks require brand new antennae, in fact transmitters are made up of many much smaller antennae. These tiny antennae can be hidden throughout towns and cities, integrated in everything from streetlights to bus stops.
But more importantly, what does this mean for you and your playlists? Well, downloading offline playlists will be almost instantaneous; an album worth of hi-fi quality tracks will download in around 10 seconds. Also high-resolution audio files will be more readily available; as networks and phones become ever more capable, high-quality media will become standard. It’s not just your playlist that will benefit this new generation network - 5G can download a full HD movie in under 8 minutes, half an hour faster than your current network would allow..
What 5G will give you is more time. On this network, data transfers will become almost instantaneous, so no longer will you be frantically waiting for streaming service downloads and WhatsApp uploads to complete. Even though 5G is the fastest cellular network to date, it will be 5 years before it's full up and running.
Whilst you wait, check out our Waiting For 5G Playlist (which would download in less than 10 seconds on 5G).