Although Google Fiber provides crazy internet speed, covering the last mile using millimeter wave, 5G tech is proving to be quite a challenge. Gigabit WiFi can only provide 7Gbps speeds provided the two end points have a line of sight. Furthermore, millimeter wave technology gets absorbed by buildings, trees and even by atmospheric moisture.

For internet enthusiasts and aficionados, ever since Google Fiber has been launched, due to its blistering speed, network stability and independence from established internet service provider, its service has seen robust growth due to high demand.

Setting up the infrastructure though, can be quite a task if not terribly expensive. So as to cover the last mile, keeping alternate economical solutions in mind, Alphabet, Google’s parent company, is exploring the possibility of deploying gigabitWiFi.

During a shareholder’s call last week, Eric Schmidt, Alphabet’s chairman discussed the nuances of the high speed millimeter wave technology. Since it operates at a higher frequency compared to traditional wifi, its signal strength however is susceptible to being absorbed by walls, trees or even atmospheric moisture.

Although Google isn’t a stranger to this technology, it has yet to propose a launch paid that commercially exploits it. Earlier this year, Google’s Project Loon’s team, proposed Project Skybender, which is code for plans to beam down 5G internet through solar powered drones.

Incidentally, the military has been using millimeter wave technology for years now. It’s only now that efforts are being made to commercially exploit this technology. In fact, Starry, a new ISP startup, embrace this tech to fight traditional ISP in their home turf. Not happy to be left behind, even Facebook announced its own gigabit wifi – Terragraph in February.

Despite its merits, covering long distances using gigabit wifi could pose significant challenges, as it needs a line of sight in order to consistently provide a backbone of 7Gbps.

In order to overcome this shortcoming, Facebook is working on its code so as to more intelligently route signals over its network nodes.