Vodafone Turkey has claimed a national first by testing the coverage and performance of the 3.5GHz spectrum band on its existing ‘4.5G’ LTE mobile network under the Technology City project in Istanbul, it announced in a press release, adding that the 3.5GHz band is ‘the most suitable band to meet the high data needs of 5G technology in terms of coverage and speed’.
The tests in partnership with Huawei used 3.5GHz TDD spectrum with commercial antennae and other radio equipment supporting 4×4 MIMO technology, achieving mobile data speeds up to 185Mbps. Four 20MHz TDDblocks were utilised. Mallik Rao, Vice President (Technology) at Vodafone Turkey, said: ‘We are continuing our efforts to develop the 4.5G network and to prepare for the 5G technology with the aim of bringing this global experience to Turkey as well. We previously tested the 700MHz band which is very important for reaching roads and rural areas through the existing 4.5G network in Turkey. We used multi-antenna technology for the first time in Euroleague Basketball Quarter Final matches and now we are the first to test 3.5GHz spectrum band in Turkey with commercial equipment and terminals, especially in urban centres, which will benefit the [high] subscriber and data traffic areas.’