Moscow – Tele2, an alternative mobile operator, has successfully completed the first NB-IoT test in live LTE-450 network in Russia. The company has used SIMcom Wireless Solutions’ modules based on MediaTek MT2625 chipsets. Three companies’ joint effort enables rapid development of NB-IoT technology and paves way for 5G era of massive IoT connectivity in future.
The first 450 MHz NB-IoT device test in the world was carried out in the live 3GPP Release 14 (Cat-NB2) compliant with the Tele2 LTE network. NB-IoT deployment in 450 MHz benefits from larger coverage area of the base station of up to 20 km. This allows to significantly reduce the cost of deployment. The advantages of the 450 MHz band are applicable to many scenarios including urban deep indoor coverage and sparsely populated rural areas.
The tested NB-IoT technology is enabled by 3GPP Release 14 (Cat-NB2) SoC powered by MediaTek MT2625 and high-quality NB-IoT wireless modules provided by SIMCom. Category NB2 provides a number of enhancements comparing to the first generation of NB-IoT including increased throughput and a number of location and mobility related features. MediaTek and SIMCom integrated ultra-low power and cost-effective IoT devices to complete the testing.
NB-IoT is a cutting-edge telecommunication standard used by operators to deploy networks for large number of data-centric devices. It enables highly autonomous IoT devices (meters, sensors, etc). Various NB-IoT based applications include smart parking, trackers, alarm systems, smart medicine, industry and agriculture.
NB-IoT benefits from low power consumption enabled by power saving mode and discontinuous reception techniques. These enhancements secure module’s extended battery life of up to 10 years. The technology is very convenient for many use cases and faster time-to-market module deployment provided by network operator.
Dmitry Kurilov, LTE-450 network development director at Tele2:
“NB-IoT penetration growth will help to enable massive and cost-effective device deployment. According to Ericsson forecast, IoT connections will reach 22 bln globally by 2024 with YoY growth of 17%. To follow this fast pace, Tele2 as a high-tech carrier needs to prepare the network for standard deployment and offer innovative use cases. We were the first in the market to introduce NB-IoT in a band with unique advantages. LTE-450 guarantees wide coverage, high penetration and cost efficiency”.
Pascal Lemasson, Associate Vice President, Corporate Sales and Business Development Europe at MediaTek:
“We are working with Tele2 and SIMCom Wireless Solutions to bring NB-IoT in 450 MHz band to live networks. Our collaboration with Tele2 brings a unique NB-IoT positioning in Russia. Our focus is to deliver an efficient, ultra-low power design with deep coverage, which means running on battery for long periods and connecting smart devices in locations that are typically hard to reach by cellular signal, thanks to the reliable coverage penetration using 450 MHz spectrum. The MediaTek chip’s highly integrated design incorporates an NB-IoT modem, antenna RF and base-band analogue front-end supporting 450 MHz with many other 3GPP standardized bands, in order to simplify the product design process for partners.”
Liujun, EMEA Sales Director at SIMCom Wireless Solutions:
“Tele2 has consistently been one of the most innovative telecom operators, which is evidenced by their adoption of LTE assets in low bands as an enabler for new services, such as IoT. From other side Mediatek is our key partner and such collaboration allow us bring to market unique multi-band NB-Iot solution. It is designed for applications that need low latency low troughput data communication in a variety of radio propagation conditions. Due to the unique combination of performance, security and flexibility this solution is ideally suited for M2M applications. SIMCom Wireless Solutions will continue invest in Russia area and cooperation with Tele2 and Mediatek”.
Source: https://en.tele2.ru/about/news-list/2019/11/18/tele2-first-to-test-nb-iot-in-live-lte-450-network