Slowly but surely, we're moving closer and closer to 5G world. From smart-home security to self-driving cars, all the internet-connected devices in your life will be able to talk to each other at lightning-fast speeds with reduced delay, Objectively speaking, the fastest 4G download speeds in the U. S. top out at an average of 19.42 Mbps. But by comparison 5G promises gigabit (千兆) speeds.

"5G is one of those signs, along with artificial intelligence, of this coming data age," said Steve Koenig, senior director of market research for the Consumer Technology Association. "The self-driving vehicle is a greatemblemof this data age, and that is to say, it is a sign of time, because with one single task, driving, you have massive amounts of data coming from the vehicle itself, and a variety of sensors are collecting a lot of information to model its environment as it moves. It's pulling in data from other vehicles about road conditions down the lane. It could be weather information, but also connected infrastructure (基础设施) construction. There's lots of data behind that task, which is why we need high speed.

Augmented reality glasses (AR实境眼镜) and virtual headset (虚拟现实耳机) haven't yet broken the mainstream, but tech companies are joyfully betting that these devices will eventually replace our smartphones. With 5G, that could actually happen. This is notable because companies such as Apple are reportedly developing AR glasses to assist — or perhaps even replace — smartphones.