1g to 5g comparison table
The transition from 1G (first generation) to 5G (fifth generation) represents significant advancements in mobile telecommunications. Below is a technical comparison table highlighting key differences between these generations:
| Aspect | 1G | 2G | 3G | 4G | 5G |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time Period | 1980s | 1990s | Early 2000s | 2009 onwards | 2020s onwards |
| Data Speed | Few Kbps | Up to 384 Kbps (GPRS) | Up to 2 Mbps (3G) | 100 Mbps to 1 Gbps (LTE) | 1 Gbps to 10 Gbps (5G) |
| Technology | Analog | Digital (GSM, CDMA) | CDMA2000, UMTS | LTE (Long-Term Evolution) | NR (New Radio) |
| Frequency Bands | Narrowband | Narrowband and Wideband | Wideband | Broadband | Broadband (mmWave, sub-6 GHz) |
| Modulation | Analog modulation | Digital modulation (e.g., QPSK, 16QAM) | CDMA modulation | OFDMA (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access) | Various (OFDM, SC-FDMA, etc.) |
| Latency | High | Lower | Lower | Low (around 30 ms) | Ultra-low (1 ms or less) |
| Architecture | Circuit-Switched | Circuit-Switched and Packet-Switched | Packet-Switched | All-IP | Network Slicing |
| Capacity and Efficiency | Low | Improved | Further improved | High | Very High |
| Use Cases | Voice Calls | SMS, Voice, Basic Data | Video Calling, Data | High-Speed Data, Streaming, VoIP | Enhanced Mobile Broadband, IoT, Mission-Critical Services |
| Security | Low | Enhanced | Improved | Advanced | Enhanced |
| Multiple Access Schemes | FDMA (Frequency Division Multiple Access) | FDMA, TDMA, CDMA | CDMA | OFDMA | OFDMA, TDMA, CDMA (in some cases) |
| Spectrum Efficiency | Low | Improved | Further improved | High | Very High |
| Backward Compatibility | - | Partial (GSM to GPRS) | Yes (backward compatibility with 2G) | Limited (some backward compatibility with 3G) | Yes (backward compatibility with 4G) |
| Notable Technologies | AMPS (Advanced Mobile Phone System) | GSM, CDMA | WCDMA (Wideband CDMA), HSPA | LTE-Advanced, LTE-Advanced Pro | Massive MIMO, Beamforming, Network Slicing, Edge Computing |
This table provides a high-level technical comparison between the various generations of mobile networks, highlighting improvements in data speed, latency, technology, and use cases as we progress from 1G to 5G. It's important to note that these are general trends, and specific implementations may vary.