Telecom company Samsung Electronics released the Samsung Galaxy S10 5G on Friday. It is the world's first smartphone with built-in fifth generation communication. This is South Korea's first step in building a lead in transformative technology.
South Korea is the first country to launch 5G services nationwide with three fast networks that went live simultaneously, offering data speeds that allow their users to download hours' worth of movies in just seconds.
A few hours later, US telecom company Verizon began their commercial services in Minneapolis and Chicago after their rival AT&T made a system that is 5G-based available to their selected users in 12 cities in December of last year.
The three mobile carriers of South Korea- KT, SK Telecom and LG Uplus - held their respective launch events all across Seoul for the Samsung Galaxy S10 5G. Its base version costs a whopping 1.30 million won or $1,200.
Robot demonstrations and interactive virtual-reality displays were available on the show to show the capabilities of the mobile internet speed of Samsung, and the users were thrilled about the endless possibilities given by the speed especially streaming movies, videos and live streaming sports games and even university lectures.
"I watch a lot of videos often, movies and lectures," said buyer Shim Ji-Hye, 38. "I hope faster speeds will help me manage my time better."
Other users are more excited about the virtual reality content offered by the service, and it includes games and VR applications.
With the fast 5G internet speed, said researcher Lee Sang-Yoon, VR content "can be enjoyed in real time with no delay... I'll be able to enjoy it in better resolution and speed".
Around the afternoon, 15,000 buyers had already subscribed to the 5G service of LG UPlus and around 10,000 users subscribed to KT's 5G offer.
Before the event, the 5G internet service was restricted to a dozen selected users in South Korea. The manufacturer LG, which is a known rival of Samsung, is set to launch their V50 ThinQ unit, which is another 5G phone, later this month. The launch will also be held in South Korea. In the United States, Verizon's network is working with Lenovo's Moto Z3 smartphone made with a special accessory.
Using the 5G internet speed across South Korea and commercializing it gives the country a lead in building a strong and stable technology which is needed for the development of devices and gadgets in the future. After launching successfully, they are looking for a way to expand their services to other countries.
