5 ways 5G could unleash your creativity

Digital designers are often hampered by the constraints of the network they’re working with. A mobile app can only include so many features, a website only so many videos before the load time slows down and the user experience suffers. At the moment, web and mobile app design involves the careful balance between user experience and innovative features. But could a new, lightning-fast 5G network change all of this? Proponents think so, seeing it as a way for designers to unleash their creativity without any of the usual constraints experienced today. Here are five ways that 5G could boost your ability to think outside the box as a designer.

1. Network limits will be lifted

It’s estimated that the 5G network speed will be 1 000 times greater (or more) than 4G, which means that the usual limits that designers and developers must work within will be lifted.

Although working within limits can certainly inspire creativity for many, lifting these with a faster, more efficient network means that designers will be free to get truly out there with their ideas. Usability issues that have thus far hampered more forward-thinking designs will be reduced.

2. 5G design trends will move faster

The technology that 5G could enable will mean that designers can draw inspiration from a wider range of sources, and this could cause trends to move at a far faster rate than we do now. Web design could become more akin to the fashion or art world, where trends are seasonal and the next big thing is always around the corner. Without the technical constraints of today’s networks, designers can find new ways for the digital and real-life world to blend together.

3. Devices will become more intuitive

The devices themselves that we use to access internet design will also change. It’s long been suggested that 5G will be the final barrier to creating an “Internet of Things,” in which machines communicate to one another without our interference. This means fully connected homes, cities, and personal computing devices. Devices will be more efficient and can support one another, opening the door for new functions that we haven’t yet been able to master. It opens the doors to designing a whole new world, so designers can think on a bigger scale.

4. The design experience will be more holistic

Along these same lines, designing will have to take the wide range of devices into account. Applications will be seen as a holistic experience, to be used seamlessly across a range of devices from the car to the home.

5. Virtual reality is on its way

New technology means entirely new features for games, websites, and mobile experiences. Virtual reality and holographic projections will become the type of features that you can work with, as opposed to the flat imagery that you now use in design. Faster connections will enable a virtual, 3D design world that could be very exciting to play around with.

Companies like Ericsson and Nokia Networks are already making strides towards 5G, but it won’t reach the consumer market until 2020 at this rate. And at that rate their will likely be a few kinks to iron out before it enables the type of design mentioned above. But there’s no doubt that when 5G does hit the mainstream, it will chance the way we look at internet design entirely, opening up new avenues of creativity for designers.