Even Without 5G Connection, Your Next Phone Will Still Download 7 GB Of Movies In 10 Seconds

The very first smartphones with the capability for 5G internet won't arrive until 2019, but it looks like we’re not going to have to wait for them to take advantage of lightning fast 4G speeds.

Chip manufacturer Qualcomm has just debuted a new component for future smartphones that will enable you to gain speeds twice as fast as current day 4G, without having a 5G-capable device.

The device in question is the new X24 LTE modem from the company, that will be a part of its upcoming processors. According to Qualcomm, this will be particularly important when 5G shoots our Internet speeds well past current-day 4G. “5G starts us off at 5 times faster than the best 4G networks available today,” Qualcomm's director of product marketing, Sherif Hanna, says. “We can expect speeds up to 10 times faster than the average 4G network.”

The thing is, most people won’t even get to experience 5G immediately, especially us here in India. And after that, telcos will also have to decide when they want to start the service, and phonemakers when they want to put that capability in.

Until then, the X24 modem is capable of supporting up to 2Gbps speeds, the first to be able to do so. That’s the kind of connection that can let you download 7GB of Ultra HD movies in under 30 seconds, or a single TV show in HD for under 10 seconds. Sure, it’s not the speed you’ll actually get, but Qualcomm still estimates its modem will be usually average about 200 to 600 Mbps. To clarify, 4G LTE today gives an average of 100 to 300 Mbps, making Qualcomm’s new component twice as fast. 

The point is, 4G speeds are going to keep being improved even as 5G connections develop. In that way, the X24 will be the stepping stone modem in between, letting us reap the benefits of improved 4G, while also preparing to support the upcoming 5G.