5G Takes VR to a New Reality | Symmetry Blog

Symmetry Electronics is an authorized global semiconductor distributor offering technical support, sales and distribution of wireless and video technologies. One technology that experienced record growth in 2019 and is continuing to grow, is virtual reality. In fact, according to Digi-Capital, VR/AR is expected to exceed $25B by 2021.

VR Enters New Industries

When most people think of VR, they often associate it with gaming or entertainment. Today, this technology has been adopted in several industrial sectors, including healthcare, engineering, real estate, retail, military and education. Through VR, consumers and businesses can experience realistic simulations to either fuel entertainment or deliver useful benefits such as process efficiencies and increased safety that could lead to money savings.

At its start, VR comprised of bulky goggles that plugged into a computer or gaming console to place a user into a mediocre virtual simulation. Since then, the technology has advanced to more compact, wireless goggles with faster software, more realistic simulations and capabilities that have extended to smart phones and tablets.

Enhancing the VR Experience

Perhaps one of the most exciting advancements that has taken place in the VR industry, is the discovery of utilizing 5G to enhance the VR experience. Through 5G, engineers have been able to create a powerful wireless experience that allows for faster speeds, while utilizing less bandwidth and low power, with the ability to stream data from the cloud.

Virtual Reality in Action

VR is benefitting the healthcare sector in many ways. In therapy, doctors can help patients overcome PTSD symptoms by re-creating circumstances and uncovering triggers that could be addressed in everyday life. Additionally, cancer patients can utilize VR during intensive procedures to help keep their mind off the discomfort.

Retail has adopted VR to allow for a more interactive at-home shopping experience. For example, IKEA has created a home furnishing simulation that allows homeowners to virtually furnish their home with IKEA products to determine if they are a fit prior to purchase. Warby Parker has integrated AI into their VR shopping experience to allow customers to virtually try on glasses and receive advice on what to purchase based off of their facial structure. Interactive at-home shopping experiences create a convenient way to shop from the comfort of your own home. It takes a customer a step further than a typical static online shopping experience while benefiting the business. Retailers are able to offer a broader inventory to more customers while saving on retail space, storage and employment compensation.

How to Get Involved

Tech giants like Google, Facebook and Apple are heavily involved in the VR/AR industry. More opportunities are coming about as new industries begin to uncover ground-breaking use cases. Interested in developing your own VR product? Take a look at our Virtual Reality Technology Teardown that provides guidance to select the components you need to develop the next big thing.

We support many other applications. Check out our other Tech Teardowns for additional inspiration and technical guidance.