SCWS - 5G in the Field: Performance and Implications of the First 5G Small Cells

London, UK - June 14, 2018 - Last month, leaders of the wireless telecommunications industry gathered at the Small Cells World Summit (SCWS) in London, to discuss the market status and perspectives for small cells and Wi-Fi. Speakers and participants -- including mobile network operators,  equipment vendors, regulators, enterprises, public institutions, media and analysts -- discussed topics including millimeter wave (mmWave) and new spectrums, new deployment and business models, as well as the evolution of connectivity for operators and enterprises as we step closer to 5G.

On May 23, Alok Shah, Vice President of Networks Strategy, Business Development and Marketing at Samsung Electronics America, gave a keynote speech on 5G in the field and the performance and implications of the first 5G small cells. The presentation began with an outline of Samsung's long history and leadership in the small cell market and its numerous references with tier-1 operators around the world, in countries such as the USA, Japan and India.

He continued by sharing the lessons that Samsung has learned over years of 5G research and trials, with a particular focus on mmWave spectrum, and the story behind what has become the first commercial 5G end-to-end solution. 

Alok went on to discuss the series of trials that Samsung carried out in cooperation with leading operators in the US, Korea and other parts of the world. He also pointed out how the results have confirmed the potential of mmWave 5G, a key component deemed vital in unlocking the full potential of 5G. He dived into details on various deployment scenarios, such as rooftop versus street poles, mid-pole versus top of the pole, and the impact of foliage on coverage and performance.

Samsung's 5G leadership has expanded beyond chipsets, network equipment, and in-home routers to also include RF planning tools for operators. Alok explained how these planning tools leverage data from multiple sources (satellite maps, 3D building maps, 360° street-level photography), massive computing power and artificial intelligence to accurately simulate how mmWave radio signals perform and react with the environment, ultimately helping to identify the optimal location for access units and CPE deployments. 

Samsung has conducted 5G trials with operators in eight different cities across the US, which examined how different environments impact the performance of 5G. Verizon has spoken publicly about how the performance of the system exceeded their expectation, enabling gigabit speeds at distances of 2,000 feet or more. Samsung and its partners are now shifting their focus from trials to commercialization. Verizon plans to launch its 5G services by the end of the year. After receiving FCC certification for Samsung's end-to-end 5G solution, there are no barriers left for 5G to become a commercial reality.

The presentation concluded with a discussion of additional 5G use cases that will follow fixed wireless access. One example is connectivity for public transit and backhaul to these systems. Indeed, in December 2017, KDDI and Samsung demonstrated successful uplink and downlink handover on a train moving at 100km/hour. The presentation finally ended when the chair and host of the session, Randall Schwartz of Wireless 20/20, asked questions that helped the audience get a clear sense of the details around mmWave in mobility and Samsung's 5G train trial in Japan. Randall emphasized that the handover achieved in high speed mobility is a great technical achievement but more importantly that it translates in a great use case and provides guidance on where to invest today.

Samsung inspires the world and shapes the future with transformative ideas and technologies. The company is redefining the worlds of TVs, smartphones, wearable devices, tablets, digital appliances, network systems, and memory, system LSI, foundry and LED solutions. For the latest news, please visit the Samsung Newsroom at http://news.samsung.com/