Why Private 5G New Radio? Why Wi-Fi? both good questions!

Wireless technology should be selected based on the business requirements and the use case to ensure the technology is 'fit-for-purpose' and 'future-proof''. In some use cases and environments private 5G and Wi-Fi technology are complementary. 

5G technology provides high-speed connectivity with increased-bandwidth, reliability, and low latency which is required for the new generation of applications to support critical communication and environments such as smart airports, smart ports, smart manufacturing, smart mining, and smart transportation.

Private 5G mobile networks enables wide-area-networks and local-area-networks which extends indoor and outdoor connectivity using secure dedicated licensed radio spectrum.  A key difference is P5G technology is not just high-speed connectivity with increased-bandwidth and low latency on dedicated radio spectrum but also provides service assurance KPIs with Quality of Service and Quality of Experience to ensure reliable delivery of voice and data. The technology offers flexibility and scalability which in design requires less hardware to be deployed which reduces the TCO.

 

5G New Radio is specifically designed for industry 4.0 and the technology is at the beginning of its journey with 5G being deployed for private networks with additional enhancements enabled by 5G advanced to be released, while Wi-Fi technology has been around for 20yrs+ and has a industry purpose but what will the future hold. 

Wi-Fi technology with the most recent version can provide improved connectivity bandwidth using shared unlicensed radio spectrum which is deployed for in-building or campus areas providing over-the-air best-effort short-range connectivity.

Wi-Fi technology will continue to develop and advance, in many cases 5G NR and Wi-Fi will co-exist for many years and potientially connectivity will be transparent using dynamic AI technology for the user experience, but the key difference is 5G technology provides secure reliable connectivity for critical communication developed for industry 4.0. 

High-level difference for Private 5G NR versus Wi-Fi Technology ->