T-Mobile US announced several world’s first milestones for standalone architecture (SA) 5G:
- The first SA 5G data session between commercial modems from two suppliers on a production network with Cisco, Ericsson, MediaTek, Nokia and Qualcomm.
- The first low-band SA 5G voice call using Evolved Packet System (EPS) fallback to VoLTE with Cisco, Ericsson, MediaTek and Nokia. This enables high quality voice services utilizing VoLTE in the SA architecture while the industry is fully developing voice over new radio (VoNR) 5G technology.
- The first low-band VoNR call on a production network with Cisco, Ericsson, MediaTek, and Nokia. VoNR allows for voice calls to run over 5G.
- The first video over new radio (ViNR) call on a production network with Cisco, Ericsson, Nokia and Qualcomm Technologies. ViNR allows for high quality video calls to run natively, instead of an Over the Top (OTT) data service. In other words – no app needed!
- Several 5G firsts with a commercial smartphone on a production network, including the first low-band SA 5G data session, first call with EPS fallback, and first VoNR & ViNR calls. These were pulled off alongside Cisco, Ericsson, Nokia, OnePlus and Qualcomm Technologies.
T-Mobile said its new multi-vendor 5G production core enabled these achievements. During the tests, standalone and non-standalone (NSA) 5G devices were operating with active sessions at the same time in the same cell. The company plans to launch standalone 5G later this year.“Powerful and reliable wireless networks are more important than ever, and these milestones mark a huge step forward for the entire wireless ecosystem,” said Neville Ray, President of Technology at T-Mobile. “Standalone 5G, paired with the broad and deep network we’re building by combining the assets of T-Mobile and Sprint, will accelerate 5G adoption and services and transform wireless!”
“T-Mobile continues to bring 5G into focus, making huge strides globally to signify exactly how things can work with the right vision, people and technology in place,” said Jonathan Davidson, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Mass Scale Infrastructure Group, Cisco. “Our work together on these series of firsts for standalone 5G to support both voice and video calls demonstrates our industry leadership and commitment to innovation. Our converged approach to 4G and 5G evolved packet core will help T-Mobile to enable mobile edge and low latency use cases with control and user plane separation (CUPS) while improving data center space, reduced power consumption and lower operational costs.”
“With 5G networks rolling out across the globe, we’re now stepping up to the next level: preparing the world for standalone 5G,” said Fredrik Jejdling, Executive Vice President and Head of Networks, Ericsson. “Using Ericsson commercial products together with T-Mobile and our ecosystem partners, we have demonstrated the potential of standalone 5G on low bands. We have achieved the latest technology milestones in a concerted effort that advances 5G technology.”
