Potential applications of 5G have everyone in the ecosystem, from consumers to service providers, excited about the type of services that will be available once the network is fully deployed. Until that time gets here, companies are carrying out trials to determine what they can expect from 5G. The trials being carried out by Nokia and KDDI (News - Alert) are looking to see the viability of delivering ultra-broadband high-bandwidth data services in urban environments. And with speeds of more than 1Gbps over 5G with Nokia (News - Alert) AirScale radio access on the 28GHz band having been achieved, it is one more reason to get excited about 5G.
Japan is one of the more advanced countries when it comes to mobile technology, so it should come as no surprise Nokia and Japanese operator KDDI have conducted a country-first trial simulating future 5G network demands. Using a high-speed, 1Gbps connectivity in an apartment building, Nokia's radio technology on the 28GHz band was able to achieve dependable connection.
Akira Matsunaga, Senior Director, Mobile NetworkTechnical Development, KDDI, said, “The speeds achieved in this trial show great potential for us to deliver high-quality services. Working with Nokia, we want to develop the use of technologies that deliver on the promise of 5G to meet our subscriber's needs.”
With so many multi dwelling units in Japan, testing the capability of 5G in this environment to see if ultra-broadband speeds can be achieved was essential. Considered as one of the most densely populated metropolitan areas in the world, Tokyo and other megacities like it are also anxiously awaiting the features 5G is going to provide.
The test was part of an agreement both companies signed last year for developing faster generation wireless communication.
“5G promises to deliver the ultra-low latency, capacity and high speeds for these types of deployment, and this trial is a great example of how it can be applied to transform the entertainment experience as one of the many use cases 5G has to offer,” said Jae Won, head of Nokia Japan.
Nokia provided its AirScale Base Station, part of Nokia's 5G FIRST end-to-end solution, which was responsible for coverage and connectivity to the apartment block. The Nokia AirFrame offered a commercial platform to enable cloud RAN and the transmission of streaming data. Together, they successfully deliver the gigabit speeds with KDDI in this environment.
The AirScale Radio Access solution and its components close the gap between IT and telecoms to speed up software cycles for greater innovation and performance while supporting existing and future technologies. The technology is ready for 5G with unlimited capacity, connectivity, scalability and agility from the cloud to deliver services such as ultra-broadband.
Edited by Alicia Young