Meanwhile mobile 5G devices won't be available until "the second half of 2019", Lew says, with telcos waiting on the international 3GPP standards body to finalise the 5G standard when it meets on the Gold Coast in September.

For now Optus is operating its first 5G services on the Gold Coast, using both the 3.5GHz band and 26GHz "millimetre wave" band already approved for 5G. Along with faster data speeds than existing 4G networks, 5G also offers significantly lower latency – or response times – allowing for remote control tasks which require high levels of precision.

Using higher bands allows for faster data transfers over shorter distances, with Optus clocking up 16 Gbps speeds as part of its 5G indoor tests on the 26GHz band.

Meanwhile Optus' 3.5GHz band offers an 800-metre range in 5G outdoor tests, delivering speeds of 2 Gbps – allowing Optus to stream 8K video to an 8K television in the back of a van driving up and down the Broadbeach shoreline. Meanwhile Telstra demonstrated 3.3 Gbps speeds over its 3.5GHz 5G demonstration on the Gold Coast in February.

Once the 5G standards are ratified and bands harmonised, smartphones will likely support both the 26GHz and 3.5GHz bands to take advantage of the higher band's faster short-range speeds, says Optus managing director of networks Dennis Wong.

Even so, the 800-metre range of the 3.5GHz band will make it difficult for 5G mobile networks to match current 4G mobile coverage. While Optus won't yet discuss initial 5G launch areas and potential coverage maps for its 3.5GHz service launching January, Wong says it's possible that lower bands offering greater range might be ratified for 5G down the track.

"As the World Radiocommunication Conference progresses they will ratify more and more 5G bands," Wong says.

"We could certainly get 5G at lower bands which can reach further, as long as the technology, ecosystem and standards support it."

For now the Optus 5G Technology Showcase is offering visitors to the Commonwealth Games hands-on experience with 5G technology and its potential applications. Demonstrations include streaming 8K video, controlling robot arms using hand gestures, live-streaming 360-degree video from the aquatic centre during the games and playing VR soccer against a real opponent.

The author travelled the Gold Coast as a guest of Optus.