Show Notes
Private 5G networks are quickly growing as an option for enterprise customers, a claim validated by the thousands of 5G private wireless trials happening globally. 5G private networks support faster and more reliable connections; and while Wi-Fi alone is a great choice for many there are several environments and compelling use cases for private 5G networks.
Private networks can enable both indoor and outdoor wireless infrastructure with connections that are creating new business opportunities and workflows. With greater flexibility, efficiency, and improved productivity through things like automation and enhanced machine communications, there are unique draws to private 5G networks over Wi-Fi that make great cases for its implementation.
One big draw to a private network is the enhanced capacity and coverage. Even when utilizing unlicensed cellular radio spectrum such as CBRS, enterprise customers can create networks that cover large spaces with stronger, more consistent service. Cellular networks are also optimized to handle more devices. In enterprise environments, the capacity to handle many connected devices can be imperative to optimizing and improving workflows and operations. Additionally, when you add 5G to the private network, signals provide expanded bandwidth. This capacity is critical in large spaces where you may have one large zone or several spaced out zones. This is a common environmental challenge in areas like manufacturing, retail or logistics where a dependable, widespread connection is integral to operations.
In addition to speed and coverage, private 5G can deliver the same quality of service as Wi-Fi with the enhanced ability to handle time-sensitive network operations. With a time-sensitive network, you can ensure all the pulses over the network are in sync. For use cases like robotics in manufacturing environments, time-sensitive networks can be incredibly important. For these same environments, private 5G offers an additional layer of security; all devices need to have a SIM card registered on the network to get access. These security measures utilizing cellular technologies greatly reduce the risk of security breaches from other devices or people to the network.
Companies like Samsung are bringing to life real-world use cases that display the power of private 5G with reliable private network solutions. Listen to this episode of Networks TechTalk to learn more about private 5G and how companies like Samsung are helping organizations manage their next-gen networks.
More from Networks TechTalk with Samsung
Wireless networks are going through a paradigm shift with the emergence of Open RAN. This new approach to architecting a multi-vendor network fosters innovation, agility, and cost efficiency in deploying and operating 5G networks. More importantly, it serves users better and faster than ever. However, there are mixed opinions in the industry and varied approaches to materializing the vision of Open RAN.
Fixed Wireless Access, or FWA, has emerged as a powerful enabler in the mobile landscape and is one method being used to fulfill the growing user demand for data. FWA is another offering to provide high-speed internet access to homes, businesses, and remote areas without relying on traditional wired connections like fiber or cable lines for the ‘last mile’ of connectivity. The demand for FWA itself among broadband users is growing with analyst firms expecting FWA users to reach 14-18 million in 2027 in the United States.
With much of the world standing on the brink of mainstream 5G usage, operators are looking for ways to extract maximum value from their network investments – essentially trying to figure out how to monetize 5G. Operators have spent the past few years on things like spectrum, working to increase base stations needed for sufficient coverage and capacity, and implementing new software tools that allow for autonomous networks and faster delivery of services and upgrades. Providers are now starting to take advantage of the high-speed, low-latency, and connectivity capacities that 5G brings to the market.
5G is the first wireless technology designed to be energy efficient and sustainable with an industry target of 90% improvement in spectral efficiency compared to 4G. This improvement, in large part, also requires energy efficiency in the equipment. Operators and vendors have devised several features to accomplish this goal including increasing spectrum bands supported in a single radio and Massive MIMO antenna capacity, beamforming, and an increasing the use of high-band frequencies. Samsung works to ensure our product experience at every step contributes to a sustainable world with eco-conscious technology and innovation. Samsung is a pioneer in vRAN, being the first to bring vRAN to market with software driven network functions to make networks more flexible and reduce processing and transmit power. Samsung is also helping to address energy efficiency with Power Amplifiers equipped with a Bias Control, dynamic download MIMO transmit paths, and with its low power, energy saving system-on-a-chip (SoC). With global mobile data traffic rates continuing to rise and applications requiring low-latency proliferating, networks will continue to densify, and the number of cell sites grow exponentially. Despite this, telecommunications industry is committed to finding ways to bring down the amount of power used and lowering our carbon footprint to run our networks. We are all excited to see the power saving techniques and features we’ve discussed today continue to advance around the globe. Watch and listen to this Networks Tech Talk episode to learn more about how Samsung and the telecommunications industry are investing in energy saving innovations and technologies.
Virtual Radio Access Networks, or vRAN, are the future of the radio access side of mobile operators’ networks. vRAN is software that runs on off-the-shelf servers rather than the proprietary, dedicated hardware that mobile network providers have been running for decades.