5G Technology Begins to Expand Beyond Smartphones

The deployment of superfast 5G networks is supposed to usher in a new era for so much more than the smartphone—everything from enhanced virtual-reality videogames to remote heart surgery. That vision has been slow to come into focus, but a first wave of 5G-enabled gadgets is emerging. Among the first uses of 5G to hit the consumer market is the delivery of home broadband internet service for the ultimate cord-cutters: those looking to not just shed their cable-TV bills but abandon Internet access via wires altogether. Samsung, for instance, has teamed up with Verizon to offer wireless 5G routers that promise to deliver at-home broadband access. The router picks up 5G signals just like a smartphone would. Other consumer devices that have started to come on the market include 5G-compatible laptops from several makers, all of which are faster than other laptops and offer higher-quality video viewing, when connected to a 5G network. (Laptops need to have a 5G chip to make that connection.) Among the latest: Lenovo teamed up with AT&T to release a 5G laptop, the ThinkPad X13 5G. The device comes with a 13.3-inch screen and retails for around $1,500. Samsung also introduced a new laptop offering 5G connectivity. The Galaxy Book Go 5G has a 14-inch screen, and sells for about $800.