Verizon and Qualcomm test massive MIMO which increases network speed and capacity

A technology called massive MIMO is being tested by Verizon and Qualcomm. MIMO, which we have discussed in the past, stands for multiple input, multiple output and it's all about increasing the connectivity between a transmitter and receiver. The result is faster data speeds and the ability to handle more traffic, clearing up congestion. While usually MIMO deals with setups like 2 x 2 (two lines at the transmitting end and two lines at the receiving end) or 3 x 3, massive MIMO is just as the name suggests. A recent test by Sprint tested 128 antennas (64 transmitters and 64 receivers) all working at the same time.

The current tests by Verizon and Qualcomm are using a device powered by next year's flagship chipset, the Snapdragon 845 mobile platform, and the Snapdragon X20 modem chip. This allowed the carrier and chip designer to test massive MIMO on a device that is ready for consumer use. The test was successful and all the tech employed on it will be ready for real life use in the first half of next year. The Snapdragon 845 mobile platform will debut on the Samsung Galaxy S9 and Samsung Galaxy S9+ as soon as February. 

The test also used Transmission Mode 9 (TM9), which enhances consumer devices to make them compatible with massive MIMO. Handsets with TM9 enabled chipsets will launch in the first half of 2018, the same time when Ericsson is expected to release antennas designed for the massive MIMO technology. It seems that everything is coming together toward a mid-2018 launch of this technology, and the faster speeds and expanded traffic that it will provide. In addition to increasing speeds and capacity on 4G LTE networks, the technology is expected to help in the build out of 5G pipelines.


Verizon is not the only carrier testing massive MIMO. T-Mobile Netherlands partnered with Huawei for a test, and it resulted in a huge 600% increase in capacity.

source: Verizon, Qualcomm

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