Mobile speed has accelerated at an exponential rate in our lifetimes. 2G gave us text messaging; 3G introduced the mobile internet; 4G refined the world of apps to give us life-changing tech like ridesharing and augmented reality. In some ways, the last 30 years have been as transformative as the Industrial Revolution.
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How is 5G changing visual storytelling?
With improved connectivity and new tools, the future of photography is now
Today, the next generation of mobile networks — 5G — is remarkably faster than 4G networks. These speeds will reshape the frontiers of how we interact with the world. As major carriers upgrade and roll out coverage, one company committed to the future of 5G is Samsung, who have developed a robust line of 5G-enabled devices.
The electronics maker believes that one sector revolutionized by 5G is storytelling, and to that end have designed the Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G with storytellers in mind. Already, creators are learning to use lightning-flash speeds to improve their storytelling. So how does faster mobile tech equal better storytelling?
Well, a creator still has to take the right photo, shoot the right video, and find the best narrative. But a story needs an audience, and 5G will make it possible for storytellers to reach that audience faster than ever. In places with solid 5G networks, content can be transmitted at speeds significantly faster than even WiFi rates.
And sharing will not just be quick, but deep. Cameras and phones can capture uncannily high-resolution images, but this level of quality was difficult to rapidly share at older bandwidths. The Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G, with its 108mp sensor and 8K video shooting capabilities, is a multimedia content machine. Consider that even a still pulled from an 8K video can work as high-resolution photography. With a 5G connection, the transmission of that content gets more and more seamless, making even 8K video streaming a possibility.* When images, video, and text can travel faster, that has an impact on everyone.
“It’s important to have a fast connection in my line of work because as a journalist and a photojournalist specifically, we work on deadlines. So whenever there’s breaking news, we have to get it to the people as soon as possible.” Harrison Hill, photojournalist
The result of stronger connectivity? Editors have more time to work on a piece. Producers can pay more attention to showcasing a story’s theme. Designers can spend more time setting up the perfect scene.
“With 5G, getting the content faster will allow more time for me to edit the project on the back end and create the best project that I can.”
The tools of good storytelling — the apps, programs, and software that can massage a few photos and interviews into, say, an award-winning documentary — are strengthened and more networked under the umbrella of a 5G connection.
Even today, work networks from across the world are involved in levels of instantaneous collaboration that were simply unimaginable in the 20th century. Each mobile network evolution has delivered dramatic changes in terms of carrier speed and penetration. 5G may well continue in this trend. From the days of sitting around a fire, storytelling has been, fundamentally, the act of sharing a slice of life. With 5G networks, that slice can be transmitted faster, and with more detail, than ever before.
*5G speeds vary and require optimal network connection (factors include frequency, bandwidth, congestion); see carrier for availability