The next generation of wireless is in the works and generating a lot of excitement; The 5G network, also known as the fifth generation cellular network, is expected to provide higher bandwidth and data speeds, with fewer transmission delays. The technology is currently in the planning stage but is expected to debut in 2020. Many say 5G will be revolutionary; as all sectors will feel the effects of the transition to new technology and are expected to bring about dramatic transformations in our daily lives. 5G will inspire new growth, accelerate innovation and generate new revenue. At the moment it is not yet clear which technologies will give the most for 5G. Favorites include millimeter wave, small cell, massive MIMO, full duplex, and beamforming. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Researchers are experimenting with transmission on shorter millimeter waves that fall between 30 and 300 gigahertz. This section of the spectrum has never been used for mobile devices before, and its openness means more bandwidth for users. This technology promises greater data capacity than we currently have. An advantage of the shorter wavelengths found in millimeter wave technology is that the antennas used to transmit and receive signals can be made comparably smaller. The problem is that millimeter waves cannot travel well through buildings or other obstacles and tend to be absorbed by rain or plants. With higher frequencies you get shorter transmission ranges, and shorter wavelengths tend to present more problems when there is no direct line of sight. Technological problems like these that the first 5G tests will try to explore and solve. Small cell networks could be the basis for building a 5G future. A small cell is basically a miniature base station that divides a cell site into much smaller parts. Small cells will help by providing greater data capacity. It will also help service providers eliminate expensive rooftop systems and installation or rental costs, reducing the overall cost. Furthermore, it will improve the performance of mobile phones. If the phone is closer to a small cellular base station, it transmits at lower power levels, which actually reduces the cell phone's power and substantially increases battery life. Small cells will also be critical at these millimeter wave frequencies because signals cannot penetrate walls or buildings and cell sizes will have a coverage range of less than 500 meters. Massive MIMO known as multiple input multiple output is a multi-user MIMO system that serves multiple users through spatial multiplexing and is used in many wireless technologies to achieve more capacity without using more spectrum. It is the only technology capable of delivering quality of service in urban, suburban and rural dense macrocells. Current 4G base stations have about a dozen antenna ports that handle all cellular traffic, but massive MIMO base stations can support about a hundred ports. This could increase the capacity of today's networks by a factor of 22 or more. Massive MIMO has its own complications. Cellular antennas today transmit information in every direction at the same time, and any crossing signals could cause serious interference. The technology known as full duplex, which allows a transceiver to be able to transmit and receive data at the same time, on the same frequency. That is.