MOBILE
“ The real benefits [ of 5G ] are only realised when we move to true ‘ SA – Stand-Alone ’ mode ”
— Chris Newall , Chief Commercial Officer , Indigo Telecom
44 an upgrade to the radio interface on the existing 4G network . The real benefits are only realised when we move to true ‘ SA – Stand-Alone ’ mode with a new 5G core and link that to a massively ‘ densified ’ cell-site infrastructure .” Implementing SA demands far more infrastructure , due to 5G radio frequencies decaying over short distances as a trade-off with their high speed . “ True SA requires the deployment of thousands of new compact base stations in buildings , on lampsposts , on rooftops - in fact , just about anywhere where we need a highperformance signal . It also requires connecting them over fibre-optics to new compact ‘ Edge Data Centres ’
DECEMBER 2020