While true 5G networks are still some time away, carriers are slowly working towards delivering speeds close to the 1Gbps benchmark with LTE-Advanced.
In a recent test in downtown Vancouver, Telus was able to achieve download speeds of 970Mbps indoors and 966Mbps outdoors, using 80MHz of spectrum.
The company utilized Licensed Assisted Access (LAA), an LTE technology that combines unlicensed 5GHz spectrum with licensed spectrum to provide faster networks speeds.
According to Swedish telecom service company Ericsson, “LAA is a key milestone on the road to 5G, leveraging a combination of licensed and unlicensed spectrum (including Wi-Fi and Bluetooth) and using higher frequency bands on a small cell architecture.”
Telus customers will soon be able to access the company’s LAA efforts “later this year,” according to a September 27th, 2017 media release.
LAA deployment is expected to continue through 2017 and 2018.
“As the first carrier to successfully deploy LAA, we’re able to combine licensed and unlicensed spectrum to offer our customers with even faster speeds and more capacity,” said Ibrahim Gedeon, Telus’s CTO, in the same release.
“As we work with industry partners and regulatory bodies to enable new spectrum for the benefit of Canadians, our award-winning network will continue to get faster and faster as we lay the foundation for our next-generation 5G networks.”
A recent PCMag speed test determined that Telus — Canada’s third-largest carrier — offers the fastest wireless speeds.
Source: Telus
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