European telecommunications vendor Nokia has announced that it has completed the first outdoor pilot of 5G New Radion on 3.5GHz frequency with Singaporean operator StarHub.
Nokia and StarhHub demonstrated industrial and consumer applications to staf, industry partners and enterprise customers over live Nokia 5G cells. It utilized the core network technology at the operators’ HQ in Singapore.
One industrial application replicated a manufacturing environment, featuring how businesses can use 5G-enabled video analytics to enhance efficiency and minimise production errors. Another demonstration showed how sports fans can turn to virtual reality headsets to enjoy 'live' events virtually lag-free over 5G.
The over-the-air pilot with third party devices showcased the capabilities of a 5G non-standalone network architecture (Nokia 5G radio technology interworking with StarHub's 4G core network) to deliver the speeds, capacity and latency required to support enhanced mobile broadband services.
Nokia deployed AirScale Radio Access technology with 5G New Radio 3GPP-compliant software and the Nokia AirFrame data center solution, leveraging its services expertise to optimise deployment.
Chong Siew Loong, Chief Technology Officer of StarHub, said: "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."
Tommi Uitto, president of Mobile Networks at Nokia, said: "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."
