5G mobile technology will usher in a golden era for virtual reality, augmented reality, Shezhen tech giants say

Reading Time:2 minutes

A holographic image of Larry King was projected during a June 24, 2016 demonstration at Hong Kong Science and Technology Park. The HumaGrams technology enables two way interaction with an audience, according to ARHT Media. Photo: David Wong

Published: 5:52pm, 10 Jul 2016Updated: 10:38pm, 10 Jul 2016

Huawei Technologies and ZTE, China’s two biggest telecommunications equipment manufacturers, are predicting a boom in the global virtual and augmented reality market when 5G mobile infrastructure starts to get widely deployed from 2020.

These Shenzhen-based companies are among the world’s leading proponents of 5G, the next-generation mobile communications technology that is touted to deliver wireless transmission speeds 100 times faster than what current 4G networks provide.

According to the GSM Association, 5G will provide 1 to 10-gigabit per second connection speeds as well as less than a millisecond in latency -- the amount of time it takes data to get from one point to another.

Wayfair demonstrates the company's augmented reality app, WayfairView, which allows shoppers to visualise furniture and decor in their homes at full-scale before they make a purchase. Photo: Wayfair handout via AP

“The virtual-reality ecosystem is not mature enough now, in terms of content and bandwidth,” Huawei vice-president of international media affairs Roland Sladek said. “If you want to stream 3D content, it’s very slow. Latency is not great. That will drastically change with 5G.”

The promise 5G holds is what the GSMA has said would lead to a “hyper-connected society” in which mobile will play an ever more important role to both consumers and industries.

The association represents nearly 800 wireless network operators and about 300 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem, which includes network equipment and handset suppliers like Huawei and ZTE.