Verizon (News - Alert) and its partners recently have been promoting the fact that the carrier now offers 4G LTE Advanced in 2,000 markets. And the carrier says 1,100 of those markets can support connectivity approaching 1Gbps.
Those 1,100 markets allow for 953Mbps connections through a combination of technologies. That includes 256 QAM modulation. The networks in these markets also rely on carrier aggregation, which combines radio channels to deliver bigger bandwidth. And they use 4x4 MIMO technology, which employs lots of antennae to minimize interference. (In its other 4G LTE (News - Alert) Advanced 900 markets, Verizon uses carrier aggregation without those other two technologies.)
Last year Verizon demonstrated the joint use the three technologies in a Boca Raton, Fla., trial with suppliers Ericsson and Qualcomm (News - Alert). Speaking of Ericsson, in July the company announced an expanded relationship with Verizon through which it will provide the tier 1 carrier with Ericsson Radio System 4G LTE equipment. The supplier added that this gear is “5G-ready”.
The Ericsson (News - Alert) Radio System is a complete, modular solution made up of hardware, software, and services. That includes baseband, fronthaul, IP router, microwave, MINI-LINK, radio, and site solutions. All of these piece parts are managed by the same management solution.
Ericsson offered a reminder of its involvement in the Verizon trial in Florida, noted above, as well as its other industry-leading work with the carrier last year. That included working with Verizon employ three-carrier aggregation on the carrier’s 4G LTE network to exceed 1 Gbps speeds. And it included the deployment of Frequency Division Duplexing Massive MIMO on Verizon’s Irvine, Calif., wireless network.
"Our customers experience the largest LTE coverage in the country, unrivaled service reliability and the most consistently fast speeds in the industry," said Nicola Palmer, Chief Network Engineering Officer and Head of Wireless Networks. "We've done this through customer-focused planning, disciplined engineering, and consistent, strategic investment, continuing to deploy LTE Advanced technologies."
Edited by Maurice Nagle