Cellular has had “Generations” as markers of the technology for a long time now. They are unofficial milestones in cellular development. To be more official you need to look into 3GPP and the Release versions as well as User Catagories for speeds.

2G had 2.5G with Higher Data Rates, GPRS, and Edge. I remember setting up serial modem connections where it acted like a landline dial up connection.

3G had 3.5G with Higher Download Speed (HSDPA) before Higher Upload Speed was added with HSUPA. Finally being called just HSPA – High Speed Packet Access. I remember cellular routers having just HSUPA and then finally they came out with HSDPA, like I said which just became HSPA.

4G also now has 4.5G – which is LTE Advanced Pro. 4G LTE being Long Term Evolution. The system was already digital … the core became all packet switched instead of having circuit switched as in 3G and 2G. 4.5G advances 4G LTE a lot. At first LTE Advanced, and now LTE Advanced Pro. We have 600Mb/s LTE-A and 1200Mb/s Advanced Pro. These are of course the system max for the technology … where average user speeds will be less depending on tower(s) loading conditions. 600M might mean user speeds of 60Mb/s. 1200M might mean user speeds of 120Mb/s. Considering the fastest for 4G LTE on average was around 20Mb/s that’s a big improvement. We have both 600M LTE-A and 1200M LTE-A PRO systems available. LTE-A PRO might not be available in your area. You should check with your cellular provider as to if it is available. AT&T is calling this “5G Evolution”.

5G Is being worked on … being tested and deployed in phases. Is it available where you are or where you travel to? You’ll have to ask. LTE – LTE-A is already a mature technology. 5G will use LTE to assist it for quite some time. 5G will need more radio heads … smaller towers closer to user areas. 5G will use some existing bands (sub 6 Ghz bands) and Millimeter (High Ghz > 6Ghz bands.) The Millimeter wave bands help with the expected much faster speeds … but don’t travel as far or penetrate objects (walls, vehicles) as well as the lower bands. Antennas are going to be a fun thing for boats and other vehicles. We will have to see what antennas come out, what becomes available. These things take time. Just like equipment such as routers (even smart phones) takes time to be developed and released for sale.

Meanwhile we have, like I said, LTE Advanced Pro 1200M and LTE Advanced 600M systems available today. Many of which use modem expansion (add-on) slots – that can take newer modems as they become available. Again this is the 4.5G mentioned above, available now.

Alan Spicer Telecom / Marine Telecom

+1 954 354 2748

communications @ marinetelecom.net

These are available now. And are supposedly future upgradable to 5G as that rolls out. You can’t change the built-in modem but these routers come with an MC-400 modem slot for future upgradability by purchasing these modems.

LTE User CAT 18 (3GPP Release 13) – 1.2Gbps Max DL Rate – 2 x 2, 4 x 4, 8 x 8 MIMO. Modem has 4 ports for 4 X 4 MIMO. (To do that on a marine vessel [or any vehicle] you need 4 topside antennas or an antenna with 4 discrete elements with their own coax downlead.)
(Note: LAA may not be as obscure as they are leading us to believe. It’s in the Qualcomm chipset, in the Telit card … hard to believe they did that just for AT&T.)
“That peak 1Gbps speed, however, is only available in the “parts of 31 cities” that have AT&T’s obscure LTE-LAA network, with “more than 400” 5G Evolution markets peaking at a lower speed of 400Mbps. Small businesses with basic connectivity needs may be able to rely on 400Mbps for everything they need today, but multiple concurrent users could easily choke an LTE modem.”
https://venturebeat.com/2018/12/13/cradlepoint-offers-5g-upgradeable-routers-ahead-of-att-network-launch/

RF Bands
• LTE FDD: B1, B25(B2), B3, B66(B4),
B26(B5), B7, B8, B12(17), B13,
B14, B20, B28, B29(DL), B30, B32(DL), B71
• LTE TDD: B38, B39, B40, B41, B42, B46(DL),
B48
• WCDMA: B1, B2, B4, B5, B8

Qualcomm X20 based …
The Snapdragon X20 LTE modem is designed to provide vastly expanded spectrum flexibility compared to the previous generation. With support for up to 5x carrier aggregation, up to 4×4 MIMO on three aggregated carriers and up to 12 LTE spatial streams, it can help many more operators around the world deploy Gigabit LTE service. Additionally, with support for License Assisted Access (LAA), Snapdragon X20 helps allow operators with as little as 10MHz of licensed spectrum tap into unlicensed spectrum to deploy Gigabit LTE, relieving congestion in crowded areas. So, even at the busiest times, you can get the service you need, when you need it, on your device.

Alan Spicer Telecom / Marine Telecom

+1 954 354 2748

communications @ marinetelecom.net

https://opensignal.com/reports/2018/07/usa/state-of-the-mobile-network

4G speeds are on the rise once again in the U.S. Operators are beginning to cross the 20 Mbps barrier for 4G download speeds, but perhaps more telling are the results we’re seeing on the regional level. In big cities like New York and Detroit we’re measuring 4G connections in excess of 30 Mbps, an indication of network capabilities to come. Analyzing more than 8 billion measurements, OpenSignal once again revisits the U.S., comparing the 3G and 4G metrics of the country’s big four service providers.

Alan Spicer Telecom / Marine Telecom

+1 954 354 2748

communications @ marinetelecom.net

The speeds listed in a 4G system are system max on an unloaded test system. Actual speeds for users on a loaded system will be much less. There is LTE Advanced Pro right now touted as a path leading to 5G. It’s called Gigabit LTE. This is only currently available in certain markets. Elsewhere it is 400 Mb/s LTE-A. We already have 600 Mb/s in LTE-A routers available. Again this is the max for the technology on an unloaded system. The routers take front pluggable add on modems. As new technologies become available – modems become available – and they will just plug into the system. Should you need Gigabit LTE it’s available both as built-in to routers and as plug in modems. Please contact me with any questions.

Alan Spicer Telecom / Marine Telecom

+1 954 354 2748

communications @ marinetelecom.net

5G For Yachts … are we there yet?

5G For Yachts. I had the question, or should I say objection, today about this.

5G is coming … but we are still in the early stages. There are test deployments by cellular carriers all over the country and  the world. Equipment to work on 5G will be a bit slower coming out. Some phones may come out in 2019 for 5G. Routers like you would use in marine vessels such as yachts will be awhile yet coming. We don’t know when.

Several of our routers that come with 4G LTE-A take plug in modem modules – which makes them field upgradable. When 5G modems come out they should just plug into existing routers that you buy now. There is no reason to delay 4G LTE-A since we have 600M LTE-A already … and you can be online and operational now. And when the modem comes out for 5G you get it and plug it in.

More info about 5G

The problem is not just routers, but antennas for the coming 5G bands. If you are talking the sub 6 Ghz bands … that might not be so bad for marine antennas. But Millimeter wave? That’s not going out miles on the ocean.

The ITU IMT-2020 specification demand for speeds up to 20 gigabits per second, achievable with millimeter waves of 15 gigahertz and higher frequency.[citation needed] 3GPP is going to submit 5G NR (New Radio) as its 5G communication standard proposal. 5G New Radio can include lower frequencies, from 600 MHz to 6 GHz. However, the speeds in these lower frequencies are only slightly higher than new 4G systems, estimated at 15% to 50% faster.

The first phase of 5G specifications in Release-15 will be completed by March 2019 to accommodate the early commercial deployment. The second phase in Release-16 is due to be completed by March 2020 for submission to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) as a candidate of IMT-2020 technology.

Frequency range 1 (< 6 GHz)
The maximum channel bandwidth defined for FR1 is 100 MHz. Note that beginning with Release 10, LTE supports 100 MHz carrier aggregation (five x 20 MHz channels.) FR1 supports a maximum modulation format of 256-QAM while LTE has a maximum of 64-QAM, meaning 5G achieves significant throughput improvements relative to LTE in the sub-6 GHz bands. However LTE-Advanced already uses 256-QAM, eliminating the advantage of 5G in FR1.

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Alan Spicer Marine Telecom

+1 954 354 2748

communications @ marinetelecom.net