The telecommunication firm Verizon, this week, completed a successful FDD Massive MIMO connection trial for 5G on a ‘fully compatible customer device’, in collaboration with Ericsson and Qualcomm Technologies.
Although this sounds like highly technical stuff, but is really cool. It will work as a key component to lessen your wait for 5G network.
“We don’t wait for the future, we build it. And this is another great example of moving the industry forward,” says Nicola Palmer, Chief Network Engineer and Head of Wireless Networks, Verizon. “Massive MIMO is a critical component of our 4G LTE Advancements and will play an important role in 5G technology that will result in single digit latency and scalability in the billions of connections.”
Massive MIMO (multiple input, multiple output), an essential element of wireless communication, is the core technology of your Wi-Fi system, 3G and 4G LTE technology.
The three companies are working to enhance its efficiency to increase the capacity, and provide more internet speed to your phone.
“This milestone further demonstrates Qualcomm Technologies’ leadership and commitment to continually bring innovative technologies to consumers to improve their mobile experiences,” said Joe Glynn, vice president, business development, Qualcomm Technologies. “We look forward to continuing our work with Verizon and Ericsson to push the limits of LTE while ushering in a world of 5G.”
In the trial, the latest Ericsson Massive MIMO software and hardware were used on Verizon’s network in Irvine, California. The trial happened on a test device with Snapdragon 845, and X20 LTE modem of Qualcomm.
The X20 LTE modem supports TM9 (Transmission Mode 9) technology which makes it completely compatible with Massive MIMO, increasing the speed of your phone.
“Advanced Antenna Systems and Massive MIMO are key technology enablers for 5G, and 4G LTE service providers and end users will also benefit from the superior capacity and network performance these technologies enable. The latest trial is another important step in the collaboration we have with Verizon and Qualcomm Technologies to further evolve 4G and prepare the network for 5G,” said Niklas Heuveldop, Head of Market Area North America, Ericsson.
Also read: MTN trials first Cat-M1 IoT network in Africa with Ericsson and Qualcomm Technologies
The Ericsson Massive MIMO portfolio will be available next year. The support may come first with commercial smartphones running Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 845 (compatible with TM9 chipset), which are expected to be available in first half of 2018.
