Will 6G Be a Glorious Leap or a Boring Necessity?

6G is coming—but will anyone really care? As the tech world buzzes with talk of the "next big thing" in mobile networks, some experts warn: 6G might not be the radical reinvention we hope for. Instead, it could be another under-the-hood upgrade—a critical but unglamorous solution to problems most users never see.

Is mobile’s future exciting or just… necessary? Let’s dive in.

📶 The Real 6G Problem: Data Traffic’s Boring Growth

• Coverage Like an Onion: Today’s mobile networks look—metaphorically—like a sliced onion: low-frequency signals (sub-GHz) blanket the city, while only those closest to a base station taste the fastest 5G speeds. The higher you go in frequency, the smaller and zippier the coverage circle, but the weaker its reach.
• 5G Solved Yesterday’s Congestion: In 2019, 4G sites in dense areas struggled to keep up with mobile video and app demands. 5G rescued networks by shifting heavy data use from overloaded 4G zones, smoothing slowdowns no one wanted to relive. As a telecom consultant put it: "If we didn't have 5G, you would notice a problem with 4G."
• Traffic Growth is Slowing: Six years ago, networks saw mobile data jump by 17% quarter to quarter. By 2024, that rate plunged to just 4%. Operators noticed—and began slashing investment: spending on new radio access gear dropped from $45 billion (2022) to $35 billion (2023).
• Bigger, Not Faster: Traffic is still growing (just at a slower rate), meaning that congestion could rear its head again in hotspots. But so far, painful 3G-era slowdowns are largely history.

Bottom line: 6G’s key driver might be old-fashioned capacity relief, not the arrival of wild new mobile experiences. Public demand isn’t exploding; it’s steady—maybe even a little boring.

🚀 6G's Proposed Solution: More Spectrum, Smarter Radios

• Even Higher Frequencies: 6G is eyeing new bands: upper 6GHz (6425–7125MHz) and the 7–15GHz range. In theory, these bands offer much more spectrum to relieve pressure at busy sites—but their signals cover even tighter circles.
• Spectrum Refarming: As 3G and eventually 2G sunset, operators could "refarm" lower frequency bands to launch 6G, just as 4G and 5G reused spectrum from earlier generations.
• Massive MIMO 2.0: 5G saw big gains by cramming 64 antennas into one radio. For 6G, that could double to 128 antennas, especially in those tiny, high-frequency cells—giving a potential 300%–400% capacity jump at busy sites.
• Incremental Core Tech: Don’t expect an all-new radio wave: Both Ericsson and other industry leaders forecast 6G will use current OFDM technology, maybe with tweaks for better uplink or lower latency.

✅ Benefits:

• Boosts capacity at the busiest sites—solving congestion before it returns.
• Allows gradual upgrades alongside equipment refresh cycles; 6G radios could be compatible with some 5G hardware.
• Potentially enables new features, like ISAC (integrated sensing and communication), which could let networks detect objects—think smart traffic controls or autonomous vehicles.

🚧 The Real-World Challenges: Tech, Spectrum, and Motivation

• Spectrum Wars: The best bands for 6G in some regions are taken—by Wi-Fi (in the Americas) or the military (Europe and North America). The highest frequencies act like millimeter wave: powerful, but expensive to deploy everywhere due to limited reach.
• Unproven Demand: With traffic growth slowing, it’s unclear if the cost of upgrading makes sense—unless some new app (think iPhone or Uber) suddenly ignites demand.
• Incremental Improvements: 5G was only 15%–20% better in capacity over 4G (before massive MIMO). If 6G’s gains at core tech are equally modest, will upgraded hardware and spectrum investment pay off?
• Equipment Costs & Complexity: Prototypes for 6G massive MIMO radios are huge, heavy, and power-hungry—raising deployment costs, especially for smaller or rural networks.
• Regulatory Hurdles: Some countries may refuse to reallocate military or Wi-Fi spectrum, leaving patchworks of 6G capabilities worldwide.

Expert Perspective: Companies like Ericsson hope that software and hardware upgrades can be made more seamless—but as a consultant notes, "You can't run today's software on a ten-year-old computer." Most 6G benefits may only arrive as older parts wear out and get replaced over time.

📉 Final Thoughts: Will 6G Matter… or Just Keep Us Connected?

• 6G is shaping up to be less a revolution (like the first smartphone) and more a vital, sometimes invisible infrastructure upgrade—relieving crowded hotspots and supporting future devices, but likely without dramatic leaps in everyday user experience.
• Breakthrough possibilities, like ISAC (radar-like sensing), may offer new value in areas from self-driving cars to drone monitoring, but these are bonus features, not core draws for most users.
• Ultimately, the success (or excitement) of 6G depends on unexpected shifts—like a killer app no one predicts—or on the slow, steady grind of keeping data flowing, even as our demands become ever more mundane.

What do you think? Is 6G a snooze, or are its hidden innovations exactly what our future demands?

Let us know on X (Former Twitter)

Sources: Iain Morris. 6G, like 5G, may turn out to be a boring necessity, June 2, 2025. https://www.lightreading.com/6g/6g-like-5g-may-turn-out-to-be-a-boring-necessity