Five things to know about LTE networks

Besides cloud computing, the construction of the 4th-LTE wireless network infrastructure, short for Long-Term Evolution, is also a new topic emerging earlier this year, especially when mobile operators In the United States and Europe, a plan is underway to transform telecommunications infrastructure to 4G within three years from now.

According to the latest data from market research firm IHS iSuppli, the total investment cost for 4G network infrastructure globally is expected to increase from US $ 1.5 billion in 2010 to 3.8 billion dollars this year and will reach 27.9 billion dollars in 2014, an increase of 107.5% over 2010.

From North America - which accounts for 90 million of the total US $ 97 million invested in global LTE networks in 2009 - the wave of investment in upgrading mobile networks to 4G will spread to European countries and globally.

However, the infrastructure conversion to LTE cannot become true after only one night. According to HIS iSuppli, this is a process of technology transformation from 2.5G, 3.5G and 4G networks so that the new generation network fully supports all existing customers and other network customers. (roaming). This also means that semiconductor suppliers will focus on developing network infrastructure solutions that meet the current needs of carriers but also meet the conditions for merging 3G network technologies. , 3.5G with the next life network technology.

The infrastructure change, according to IHS iSuppli, will provide many opportunities for network service providers, original infrastructure equipment manufacturers, semiconductor suppliers, and software vendors specializing in solutions. solution for terminals. LTE is considered to be the world's new standard for mobile data and there are differences compared to 3G predecessors.

Speed ​​faster

LTE is simply understood as the fourth generation (4G) mobile network, followed by standardized 3G (3GPP) by Third Generation Partnership Project. LTE technology allows data transfer with an average download speed of 100 Mb / s and an upload of 50 Mbps. This speed is faster than 3G network and allows the use of image services such as television, video, music, data downloads.

The first LTE services were offered by Swedish telecom service provider TeliaSonera to launch Stockholm (Sweden) and Oslo (Norway) markets in December 2009. Later in the US, Verizon became the first mobile network service provider to deploy 4G. According to the test results late last year, the average download speed when using LTE networks - running on the 2.6 GHz frequency - of TeliaSonera is 33.4 Mbps. Verizon's LTE network uses a narrower band with 700 MHz. The average download speed of Verizon is lower from 5-12 Mbps, and uploading is 2-5 Mb / sec depending on the coverage area. However, both of the levels published above are higher than the actual speed of 3G networks usually no more than 4 Mbps. It is evident that a higher-speed network generation is designed to meet the booming demand for high-quality video data transmission services.

Signal delay decreases

With LTE networks, the signal latency is much lower than 2G and 3G networks. This is extremely important because most image-related applications are based on the transmission of packet data between the mobile network and the mobile terminal. For example, when making international calls from mobile phones (can be via Skype or international calling cards - Voice IP format), if the delay time of the small signal, we hear the other party speak early and vice versa, or as With Streaming Video, the image display time is also faster. Verizon service provider said that with LTE network, the signal delay is about half of that of 3G network and about 30 ms.

LTE will become a global standard

Currently only about 17 commercial services run on LTE, but according to the World GSM Association, more than 173 providers plan to develop these services.

When comparing between LTE and GSM, Roger Entner, founder and researcher of telecommunications applications for Recon Analytics, US, said GSM networks are being used mostly in Europe and Asia while Europe The US and South Korea are using CDMA networks. LTE will have an advantage over GSM as it can easily integrate with 3G, 2G as well as CDMA without changing many telecommunications infrastructure.

Notice the parameters from the network

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) late last year announced that LTE and WiMAX are not eligible for 4G, unless the network provider offers a new version with data transfer rates greater than 100 Mbps. . But then the ITU does not keep these standards strictly and only requires a significant increase in speed compared to 3G, which is considered satisfactory.

And then from 3G, vendors have quickly grown into 4G and it has become a new marketing term for service providers - Entner said. Therefore, users need to consider and consider parameters from network operators to choose and use appropriate services.

LTE cannot be covered

Currently the coverage of Verizon's LTE network reaches only 110 million people and will double next year, while the 3G network has reached 290 million people. However, according to Dan Mead, Verizon's chairman and CEO, everything is just getting started, Verizon's 4G LTE will quickly expand, it will reach coverage like 3G in 2013. Similarly, AT&T also Follow this route. Thus, it will take about two years for LTE coverage to meet the needs of consumers in the US and then there will be many devices that support both 2G, 3G, and 4G are born.