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Samsung hits 5G record

Staff Writer
By Staff Writer, ITWeb
Johannesburg, 27 Oct 2014
Samsung recently hit an all-time high of 7.5Gbps in its quest to provide new generation mobile broadband technology.
Samsung recently hit an all-time high of 7.5Gbps in its quest to provide new generation mobile broadband technology.

While SA is just starting to see the first signs of true 4G technology (LTE-Advanced), some of its international counterparts have made progress with plans to get ahead in the global 5G race.

Recently, South Korean tech giant Samsung Electronics announced what it says are two industry first milestones in the development of 5G telecommunications networking technology, clocking 7.5Gbps - or 940MB per second - the fastest ever 5G data transmission rate while in a stationary environment.

"[Samsung] was also the industry's first to achieve an uninterrupted and stable connection at 1.2Gbps, or 150MB per second, in a mobile environment from a vehicle travelling at over 100km/h."

Chang Yeong Kim, head of Samsung's research and development (R&D) centre, says the company will continue to build on these milestones, and develop advanced technologies that contribute to the 5G standard.

"In addition to leveraging our own global R&D capabilities, we will also continue to cooperate with other industry leaders and research centres across the world. Whether you are talking about mobile devices, the cloud, or the Internet of things, the demand for the 5G telecommunications standard and its supporting technologies will continue to grow."

Test tech

Samsung's recent stationary test was the industry's first successful 5G trial that was conducted in an outdoor setting. Previous successful 5G tests throughout the industry have been conducted in stabilised, indoor environments, including laboratories.

Both the stationary and mobile tests were conducted over a 28GHz 5G network. Until now, the industry as a whole has not used higher frequencies, such as 28GHz, despite their speed-related benefits, due to the challenges such as short communication range.

Samsung used its Hybrid Adaptive Array technology, which uses millimetre wave frequency bands, to enable the use of higher frequencies over greater distances, to overcome the obstacle.

While the 5G standard has yet to be ratified, 5G networks are expected to offer data transmission rates that are tens, if not hundreds, of times faster than 4G LTE.

The EU said in December it would spend EUR700 million ($953 million and about R10.3 billion) on 5G technology research over the next seven years, while companies in the telecoms sector would provide more than EUR3 billion.

Chinese smartphone maker Huawei announced in November that it planned to invest $600 million in research into 5G, and expected its network to be ready for deployment by 2020.

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