5 Unexpected Devices That Can Work on a 5G Network

Since its introduction in 2019, 5G has taken over the United States. Customers can get a 5G signal nationwide and (compared to 4G) this has enabled real improvements in cellular connection speed, near-zero latency, and the ability to connect millions of IoT devices. Basically anything could run on a 5G connection, if companies decided to do so. With a 5G network, you can find laptops, self-driving vehicles, and even your own home internet can run on cellular 5G.

The adoption has been so good that even Apple – still a slow player in the market, still taking a few years to introduce a phone with 5G support – is now offering an Apple Watch with these capabilities. Apple users should also know that rumors suggest a new MacBook Pro redesign could also support 5G connectivity. More importantly, as companies begin to lay the groundwork for the next era of 6G networking, new promises are emerging of a revolution in speed, reliability and the number of gadgets that can be connected simultaneously, while opening the door to even more applications in different areas, such as telemedicine.

With new wearable trends where the smartphone becomes the 5G hub for smart glasses, AI companions, and more, there are also products that can work well without Wi-Fi, relying solely on a 5G network. Here are a few.

Although it is not a very common feature, some laptop manufacturers offer laptops with 5G connectivity. After all, who hasn’t ever wished they had a solid cellular connection on a laptop while working at a coffee shop, instead of asking for a password or using your phone’s hotspot, quickly draining the battery life of two products at once? Among the options, Microsoft offers its latest Surface Pro for Business laptop with 5G connectivity.

Made from a thin and light chassis, Microsoft’s laptop sits somewhere between a practical tablet and a powerful computer. It offers different configurations based on the Intel Core Ultra processor for customers to choose from, as the Ultra 7 model comes with an OLED display and a wide range of RAM and storage configurations, while the base model uses an LCD display and only two different RAM options.

This 2-in-1 laptop features both nanoSIM and eSIM technology, so you can choose how to connect this device to a 5G network, and Microsoft is touting these expanded capabilities as a way for professionals to use Copilot and other AI applications no matter what. Although this laptop is part of Microsoft’s professional line, anyone can buy this computer, as it gives professionals the flexibility to work the way they want: in tablet or desktop mode, or over Wi-Fi or 5G.

Drones connected to the cellular network are expected to become one of the most important elements of the upcoming 6G market. Yet as we move forward into this late 5G era, there are already applications with drones controlled over private 5G networks. Currently focused on the B2B market, Nokia’s solution includes its drones, a docking station, a ground control station and complementary equipment, such as a dual gimbal camera, allowing multiple drones to carry out individual automated missions from a single ground control station.

Nokia currently focuses its offering on sectors such as energy, construction, agriculture, mining, public safety, telecommunications and applications such as fire monitoring, perimeter security, industrial inspection, etc. In these cases, the advantage of 5G lies in the low latency of this cellular band combined with prioritized connectivity thanks to a private network that cannot be disrupted by public network congestion.

For customer-centric applications, the closest option for 5G drones is a 4G/5G dongle offered by DJI. Even though it is not available in America, overseas users can purchase a cellular dongle for the DJI Mavic 4 Pro. The main advantage is that you will be able to fly the drone as long as the connection is stable, which would potentially give you a wider range than the drone’s current capabilities.

While people are accustomed to having a fiber optic connection at home or at work, a new trend is gaining momentum: 5G home internet modems. In the United States, there are three major players: T-Mobile, Verizon and AT&T. T-Mobile, as of 2026, offers the best coverage and starts at $50 per month with a typical download of 245 Mbps and peaks to over 400 Mbps, plus unlimited data. Verizon offers plans starting at $50 per month and can reach speeds of up to 300 Mbps or, on premium mmWave plans, up to 1 Gbps. AT&T is the newest player and offers $60 per month plans offering speeds from 75 to 225 Mbps.

The main advantage of choosing a 5G home internet modem over a traditional fiber plan is that no cables or professional installation are required. Once you receive the modem, you simply plug it into the mains and you are online within minutes. It also has no annual contract, and often no equipment or activation fees. On top of that, existing wireless customers can receive a bundle discount, making the plan more attractive to renters, frequent movers, or in a building where it’s difficult to add fiber. The downside, however, is that the connection depends on the distance between the towers and the footprint. So it may not seem like a good idea to upgrade from fiber optics to a 5G modem.

Autonomous vehicles are developing slowly, especially in China and the United States. While in America Waymo uses 5G in the background because the platform doesn’t rely on a continuous wireless connection for safe driving and doesn’t require car-to-car communication, China’s Baidu Apollo Go has a different approach. Operating in select Chinese cities and abroad, it relies on 5G cloud remote driving, meaning that if the vehicle gets confused or something happens, a remote human operator can step in and guide the car safely from a control center. This is possible because the near-instantaneous connection of 5G allows the operator to see and react in real time.

These cars already have cameras and sensors to handle most trips, but 5G works as an “additional sense” because it allows cars to instantly get updates from smart traffic lights, road sensors and other cars about things they can’t see themselves, like a truck blocking a hidden turn. With upcoming 6G capabilities, these autonomous vehicles will become even more reliable and better connected to each other, as they combine large language models to offer more sophisticated in-vehicle decision-making, as well as integrated sensing and communication, where the network can contribute to situational awareness, rather than simply relaying data between separate sensors.

5G robots fall somewhere between what’s coming soon and what already exists. In the B2B market, Amazon, Agility Robotics and Agibot are deploying humanoid robots in warehouses and factories. These industrial robots use both Wi-Fi and 5G technologies because they need reliable responsiveness to complete their tasks, especially if they interact near people. Since Wi-Fi can struggle to maintain this latency in large mobile installations, that’s where 5G comes in.

On the other hand, some real customers have had early access to 1X’s NEO home robots, which were rolled out in 2026 and are expected to scale. They are designed to handle everyday tasks and when they can’t complete a task on their own, you can call on a human operator to help guide it. So, not only will the robot be trained by the operator in these real-world scenarios, but 5G will play an important role for low-latency actions. In the near future, we may start to see more applications for consumer robots. For example, Agibot launched a humanoid robot rental program where you can rent a robot for a specific task or date, such as for social interactions, tour assistance, and other possibilities.