Trials of 5G mobile connectivity begin in the West Midlands

  • The West Midlands is one of the first places in the UK to trial high speed 5G connectivity across multiple cities.

  • The hubs in Birmingham, Coventry and Wolverhampton will pave the way for the future rollout of 5G across the UK.

  • The technology could be used for healthcare, so that ambulances and paramedics can live stream patient data to the hospital; intelligent cameras which react to incidents in public spaces; and futuristic autonomous vehicles.

Trials of 5G mobile connectivity have begun in Birmingham, Coventry and Wolverhampton. The technology, which will eventually replace 4G, is capable of delivering speeds as fast as home fibre optic. The testing is expected to last several months. Permanent networks will set up later in 2019, once 5G-enabled phones are launched to the public.

What is 5G?

It stands for 5th generation of mobile networks - the first was of course 1G - which just allowed voice calls.

What does it do?

Much faster data download and upload speeds - some are saying as much as 100 times faster, wider coverage, and more stable connections.

What are the benefits?

It could open up new opportunities in:

  • Autonomous cars, which will need to be constantly connected to the internet

  • The Internet of Things devices - like smart fridges and lights

  • Virtual reality experiences

  • Drone transportation and monitoring

  • Industry - medical operations could be done from miles away via robots

5G technology is capable of delivering speeds up to five times as fast as 4G Credit: PA

The £75 million trial will be carried out in the health, construction and automotive sectors, with the aim of boosting economic growth and modernising public services.

Plans in the West Midlands include:

  • The £75 million trial will be carried out in the health, construction and automotive sectors, with the aim of boosting economic growth and modernising public services.

  • Plans in the West Midlands include:

  • Hospital outpatient appointments and emergency consultations could be carried out remotely by video link without disrupted connections.

  • Connected ambulances - paramedics could access specialist advice while they are at the scene via video link and livestream patient data back to hospitals as they travel.

  • Live streaming of CCTV footage from public spaces like buses to identify potential incidents, from more places than at present.

  • Autonomous vehicle development.