Oulu-based ICT companies Nokia and MediaTek have achieved a successful carrier aggregation (CA) in partnership with du (from Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company). The success of this groundbreaking collaboration could potentially lead to improved 5G data rates, coverage and performance in the Middle East region.
During a trial period, the successful CA was was achieved by combining three Time Division Duplex (TDD) carriers. Nokia contributed its commercial AirScale Baseband and massive MIMO products, powered by its ReefShark chipset, whilst MediaTek provided their 5G mobile platform via the Release-16 M80 modem. They then aggregated two bands with high bandwidth – 200 MHz of N78 and 100 MHz of N41.
The results of this aggregation was the world’s highest spectrum throughput, reaching a data speed of 4.520 Gbps – around 565 Mbps.
“We are excited to achieve the highest throughput ever by using such advanced technology; thanks to our collaboration with Nokia and MediaTek,” said Saleem AlBlooshi, du CTO. “This milestone will enable us to plan for the new and enhanced services that we will be able to offer with 5G and put us in a leading position to highlight our commercial 5G capabilities.”
Mikko Lavanti, senior vice president, mobile networks, Nokia MEA, explained: “The mid-band allocations allow for 100 MHz wide 5G carriers, which translates directly into higher peak data rates and increased average data rates for users, giving them access to more attractive services. Nokia’s industry-leading 5G Carrier Aggregation solutions help operators maximize the benefits of their spectrum assets, as our collaboration with du demonstrates.”
“Our vision is to work with the ecosystem to continuously enhance 5G capacity and performance with features that add value to consumers of smartphones and mobile broadband 5G devices,” added Miles Sun, general manager of corporate sales at MediaTek Asia and Africa. “This collaboration with du and Nokia is an important step in making this vision a reality in the UAE’s advanced 5G market.”