Hong Kong's mobile operator SmarTone has partnered with Ericsson to trial FDD Massive MIMO technology in the 1.8GHz band as part of the operator’s evolution towards the 5G.
The trial which represents the first of its kind for operators in Hong Kong, is proving the capabilities of this key technology ahead of the live deployment in 2018 of AIR 3246, Ericsson’s new radio that can support Massive MIMO over 4G/LTE with Ericsson’s 5G Massive MIMO Plug-In.
The Operator plans to upgrade its network nationwide with Massive MIMO technology after the trial is completed early in 2018, starting in the most congested areas such as Central and Causeway Bay districts.
Massive MIMO is a key technology that bridges network evolution from 4G to 5G, adding intelligent capacity and boosting user experience. Massive MIMO on FDD yields a multi-fold increase of network capacity and increase user throughput by up to five times, boosting performance for end users.
Ericsson has recently launched its first radio, AIR 3246, supporting FDD Massive MIMO for both 4G and 5G. The technology enables operators – especially in metropolitan areas – to bring 5G to subscribers using today’s mid-band spectrum and boost capacity in their LTE networks.
Stephen Chau, CTO, SmartTone
Ericsson’s FDD Massive MIMO solution will play an instrumental part in providing our customers in dense urban environments with enhanced user experiences they have come to expect from SmarTone.
Nishant Batra, Head of Product Area Network Infrastructure, Ericsson
We are working closely with SmarTone to develop, trial, and deploy key 5G technologies that will further enhance the user experience. The recent LAA field trial, and now the trial of FDD Massive MIMO, enable us to jointly shape the next-generation network technology.
