India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 1, 2022 (Saturday) announced the launch of the much awaited 5G services in the country.
5G, which was first launched in the United States and South Korea in April 2019, is coming to India after a successful 5G spectrum auction recently.
Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel are gearing up for 5G services in a phased manner. Both Jio and Airtel did not announce their 5G packages for Indians today since their 5G networks are not ready at present for business purposes.
5G will be launched in select cities on Saturday and it will progressively cover the entire country over the next couple of years. There is no information on the availability of 5G plans from telecom operators.
The cumulative economic impact of 5G on India is estimated to reach $450 billion by 2035.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday experienced several 5G use cases first-hand here, along with driving a car remotely and enjoying augmented reality/virtual reality (AR/VR) via wearable devices.
At the Jio Pavilion, Narendra Modi witnessed 5G devices displayed at the pavilion and experienced the use cases through Jio Glass.
Bharti Airtel on Saturday showcased a 5G-connected ambulance to transform primary health care in emergency situations, along with smart farming solutions to Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the 5G official launch in the country.
The 5G ambulance, that can be built for around Rs 7-7.5 lakh, brings a hospital’s emergency care to the patient.
Airtel, Apollo Hospitals and Cisco have joined hands to build the 5G-connected ambulance.
“Healthcare is one of the promising use cases for 5G. We are delighted to partner with Apollo Hospitals and Cisco to bring some innovative use cases for the Indian market,” said Ajay Chitkara, Director & CEO, Airtel Business, Bharti Airtel.
The company also showcased smart farming solutions to Modi during his visit to the Airtel pavilion.
Airtel, along with its partners L&T and CDAC, has made an effort to make the agriculture sector more productive with the help of 5G technology.
India has more than 500 million smartphone users and more than 100 million users with 5G-ready smartphones wish to upgrade to a 5G subscription in 2023, according to a latest Ericsson report.
Realme has dedicated 90 percent of its research and development efforts to 5G technologies and devices. “We have partnered with the leading telcos in India and have curated a host of bundle offers for our users,” Madhav Sheth, CEO realme India, VP, realme and President, realme International Business Group, said
Realme is also rolling out OTA updates for our devices to ensure that all users can make the most of 5G.
The Indian smartphone users are even willing to pay a 45 percent premium for a plan bundled with novel experiences, the findings showed, which could be a delight for internet service providers ready with 5G, according to the Ericsson study.
“Supreme data download rates, three times greater spectrum efficiency, and super low latency will empower India to experience use cases like seamless video calls, instant downloads and uploads and seamless gaming on the cloud,” Tasleem Arif, VP and R&D Head, OPPO India, said.
5G-enabled smartphone users in 30 Indian cities in India are getting 39.2 percent to 59.3 percent faster download speeds than those on non-5G phones, according to a report by Opensignal.
“We have been working closely with various telecom operators for over two years and have tested most of our models for usability. Having a strong understanding of SA and NSA network bands, we have rolled out devices that support some of the most anticipated bands,” Muralikrishnan B, President, Xiaomi India, said.
Online gaming, AR and VR experience along with content creation will take centre-stage with the launch of 5G services.
Xiaomi India launched over 20 5G enabled models to date and currently have 7.5 million Xiaomi 5G users.
