The FINANCIAL — At a press conference held at Palau de Congressos de Catalunya on February 26, Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. unveiled its end-to-end portfolio of 5G mobile network products and solutions.
Showcased products include consumer devices for fixed wireless access connectivity, a 5G Radio base station (Access Unit), Next-Generation Core Network infrastructure and more. With pre-commercial versions of the equipment already in deployment in trial networks across the globe, Samsung’s commercial 5G portfolio is backed by a foundation of experience, knowledge and concrete trial results, according to Samsung.
“Samsung has been focused on 5G R&D for nearly half a decade, and this portfolio launch represents the culmination of a lot of hard work and industry engagement,” said Paul Kyungwhoon Cheun, Executive Vice President and Head of Next Generation Communications Business Team at Samsung Electronics. “With pre-commercial deployment of our 5G products already underway in the US, we’re starting to see some of the earliest evidence of the potential for new and compelling 5G-driven services. It will be exciting to see it evolve as we move forward on our roadmap.”
At the Network Edge
The new portfolio of 5G mobile network products includes a 5G Home Router (Customer Premise Equipment or CPE), 5G Radio base station, Next-Generation Core network infrastructure, and Network-wide Management Systems. Details are below:
The 5G Home Router explores new territory by extending the mobile network and planting a new fixed wireless network. The 5G Home Router allows users direct connectivity to the wireless network, with simple placement of it in a window facing a nearby 5G Radio (see below). A peak data rate of up to 1Gbps enables service providers to dimension networks that provide an attractive alternative to often-costly FTTH deployments.
The 5G Radio base station is a natural extension of today’s LTE small cells, designed to be installed in a dense configuration that allows for very high network capacities. The system supports 28GHz mmWave spectrum – a common frequency in leading 5G markets – and is capable of providing upwards of 10Gbps among devices within its coverage range. With an emphasis on compact size and easy installation, Samsung aims to make 5G network deployments less resource-intensive compared to today’s LTE small cell deployments.
Samsung’s Next-Generation Core network infrastructure serves as the centralized point of control and direction for network traffic, and provides a leap in performance and flexibility aligned to the demands of emerging connectivity use cases. With a shift to a software-driven architecture, the virtualized core gains the ability to split network resources and individual network functions to maintain peak operational efficiencies. For example, data-heavy Internet-bound traffic can exit the service provider’s network closer to the user, helping reduce network congestion for operators, and improve service responsiveness for users.
Samsung’s Network-wide management systems leverage powerful Maintenance and Operation (MANO) systems, as well as localized virtual Element Management Systems (EMS), to ensure that each component of a network is running at peak efficiency, and in full coordination with the network overall. These systems are designed to handle the complexities of next-generation architectures, while providing network operations staff with intuitive controls to manage service delivery and network performance.
In addition, Samsung recently unveiled commercial readiness of the 5G RF Integrated Circuit (RFIC) chipset and ASIC modems, designed to strengthen overall performance of the portfolio’s 5G Radio and other radio access products. The RFIC places a strong emphasis on low cost, high efficiency and compact form factors, helping drive 5G production and commercialization.
Commercial Launch
With pre-commercial versions of these products and solutions already under deployment with operators in the U.S., Korea and Japan, Samsung’s 5G product portfolio represents the final leg of a journey towards industry 5G adoption. Leveraging experience from trials planned for 2017, Samsung’s 5G products for this year will drive the first wave of commercial 5G deployments, and help ensure a smooth transition to a new era in mobile connectivity.
Going forward, Samsung will focus on extending its 5G portfolio with support for additional mmWave band support and below-6GHz connectivity. Samsung’s 5G portfolio is designed to be upgradable to 3GPP standards as they are finalized.
