Thanks to its faster transmission, quicker response and wider connection, there are high expectations from 5G. After the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued 5G commercial licenses in June, 50 cities, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen, began to be covered by the 5G network in the initial phase.

Building 5G base stations needs time, and the coverage can be expanded only gradually. Even in places that are already covered, the experience is far from satisfactory. Even outdoors, the 5G signals are patchy, while indoors, they almost disappear. The frequency of 5G is super high but the higher the frequency of electromagnetic waves, the shorter their wavelengths. As a result, they tend to disappear quickly. The 5G signal also tends to be blocked easily by barriers. If to receive the signals there needs to be indoor 5G micro base stations, then who will pay for these extra facilities?

Meanwhile, there is resistance from some residential communities to 5G base stations, as the residents fret about the prospects of radiation from these stations. Thus, there is still a lot of work to be done to address people's fears, through measures such as regular reporting on the results of radiation monitoring.

To expand the coverage of 5G, telecom operators or local governments need to work out a unified schedule, with a view to cutting the cost for users, and more importantly, to improve the network. When users realize the merits of 5G, more people will begin to use it and thereby offer support for 5G's further development.

(This is an edited excerpt of an article originally published in Beijing Youth Daily on September 3)