China is Testing the Fastest Mobile Internet The World Has Ever Seen

China has started running trials for 5G internet connection technology. The country is set to distribute equipment across 100 cities in 20 provinces, with more planned.

The quest for 5G mobile internet connectivity is an ongoing rat race. Estonia, Japan, South Korea, Sweden, Turkey and the United States are contenders, and China hopes to take the lead in its recent attempt.

For those new to the concept, 5G is a wireless connection built to keep up with the plethora of mobile devices that harness the world wide web. “Mobile” does not only refer to smartphones and tablets, but it’s also those appliances, cars and wearables that remind us the future is now.

5G is officially named IMT-2020. With speeds of up to 20 Gbps, it’s technically 20 times faster than today’s 4G tech, letting you download a 25-GB, ultra-HD movie in about 10 seconds.

According to South China Morning Post, China has the world’s largest 4G market, with 30% of 1.3 billion mobile phone users at the end of 2015. This puts the country in a good position to conduct trials. The technologies being tested reportedly include massive multiple-antenna systems.

Chris Lane, senior analyst at Bernstein Research, said:

“We believe ‘China Inc’ has a strong vested interest in ensuring a significant amount of Chinese technology is embedded in the [5G] standard – finally freeing them of their dependency on foreign technology and the need to pay royalties.”