The trial used Nokia’s AirScale Radio Access technology with 5G New Radio 3GPP-compliant software
Singaporean carrier StarHub and Nokia have completed what they described as the first outdoor pilot of 5G New Radio on 3.5 GHz frequency band in Singapore.
The companies demonstrated industrial and consumer applications of this technology to staff, industry partners and enterprise customers over “live” Nokia 5G cells and core network technology at StarHub’s headquarters in Singapore.
The Asian carrier said one industrial application replicated a manufacturing environment, demonstrating how businesses can use 5G-enabled video analytics to enhance efficiency and minimize production errors.
For the trial, Nokia deployed its AirScale Radio Access technology with 5G New Radio 3GPP-compliant software operating in the 3.5 GHz frequency band and the Nokia AirFrame data center solution. The trial also included Nokia Massive MIMO technology as well as third party virtual reality user equipment.
“As 5G inches closer, we are intensifying trials to identify new business opportunities and chart our network transformation roadmap to meet the demands of our customers. This successful pilot with Nokia showcases the readiness and possibilities of 5G to enhance consumer services and boost efficiencies for enterprises. It aligns with StarHub’s goal to support and accelerate Smart Nation initiatives in Singapore,” said Chong Siew Loong, CTO of StarHub,
“Nokia is able to offer customers such as StarHub a pre-integrated and ultra-optimised network using its 5G Future X end-to-end architecture to accelerate the launch of 5G. Leveraging this technology, customers such as StarHub can achieve greater operational efficiencies and higher performance as they begin to deliver enhanced mobile broadband services,” said Tommi Uitto, president of Mobile Networks at Nokia.
Earlier this year, Nokia and local carrier M1 Limited (M1) and Nokia have announced plans to conduct a trial of 5G-based small cells, which was expected to take place during the last quarter of 2018.
The two companies also said they will showcase 5G use cases in selected vertical industries which require dedicated small cell capacity and very low-latency internet of things (IoT) connectivity.
M1 said that the findings from this live small cell trial will provide practical lessons for the commercial deployment of 5G small cells in a dense cell grid architecture and operating at 5G frequency bands.
Last year, Ericsson and local operator Singtel had announced plans to jointly establish a center of excellence (CoE) to facilitate 5G development and deployment in Singapore.
The two partners said the new 5G center will require an initial investment of $1.7 million over the next three years. The companies also said the new facility will support Singapore’s smart nation initiatives. The 5G center will also be open to Optus, an Australian telco controlled by Singel.
Ericsson and Singtel also said that the center will carry out 5G demos, live field trials and host collaboration with third parties.
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