For wireless carriers still looking for reasons to upgrade to 5G standalone (SA), the latest test from Signals Research Group shows an eye-catching improvement in upstream capacity with a 5G core network.
The test compared the performance between 5G SA and 5G non-standalone (NSA) on Verizon’s network with Ericsson infrastructure in St. Paul, Minnesota, using two Motorola razr fold smartphones. One device was configured to use SA and the other used NSA.
The result was that the 5G SA smartphone had 2.2-times higher spectral efficiency than the 5G NSA handset. Meaning, operators can gain more than twice as much uplink capacity using the same amount of spectrum.
Mike Thelander, CEO and founder of Signals Research Group, said he was in the city to check out the performance of Ericsson’s 32T32R massive MIMO radios that Verizon had deployed in frequency division duplex (FDD) spectrum, which is the subject of his previous study. While there, he could also compare uplink performance in 5G SA versus 5G NSA.
The massive MIMO radios at the site tested support both LTE Band 66 (i.e., AWS-3) and 5G Band n2 (PCS). Notably, the Motorola smartphones also supported uplink MIMO, which accounts for “much of the gain with SA,” he said.
“This is the most critical part of the explanation, and it isn’t possible with 5G NSA since the smartphone would need one transmitter on LTE and one transmitter on 5G. With SA, both transmission chains can be used on 5G,” he explained.
NSA ties 5G radios to the old 4G LTE core network and was introduced as an interim setup for early 5G deployments. SA requires a new 5G core network and is sometimes referred to as “true” or “real” 5G.
For Thelander, the reasons for upgrading to 5G SA are based on the technology’s performance and have nothing to do with network slicing, the much-hyped 5G feature that has long promised to boost service revenues for mobile operators.
One is that 5G SA “improves handover optimization” especially in small cell networks. The other is higher data speeds for end users and spectral efficiency, particularly in the upstream direction. The latest test offers “real-world performance data” for the latter.
“The transition from NSA to SA isn’t simple, but there is clearly a compelling reason for making the switch. Further, the excuses that once had some validity (limited device support, unproven technology) no longer have merit. Operators lose all credibility if they lament about 5G performance and the need for 6G, or they stress out about the yet-to-be-proven impact of AI on uplink data traffic if they remain beholden to NSA,” Thelander concluded in the report.
Still early for the 5G core
However, the efficiency gains have not been enough to convince most operators to make the leap to a 5G core. Most 5G services today still run on NSA. Just 29% of 5G services were on SA as of April, according to the Global mobile Suppliers Association (GSA).
The prevalence of 5G core networks is quite low considering the first 5G services launched seven years ago in 2019.
According to Omdia (a Light Reading sister company), 104 operators have deployed 5G core networks as of the second quarter of this year, up from 95 in the first quarter. It also found there were 26 deployments of 5G-Advanced in Q2, compared to 20 in Q1.
In the US, AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon have all rolled out 5G SA, while T-Mobile has also upgraded to 5G-Advanced. However, it is less clear in the US and elsewhere just how many customers have been migrated onto the 5G core networks.
“The slow adoption of 5G core reflects both operational and financial realities,” said Roberto Kompany, principal analyst, mobile infrastructure, at Omdia. “Operators must undertake complex cloud-native transformation programs, often requiring external expertise, while also managing tight investment budgets after years of margin pressure.”
But he said it is “a strategic necessity” for unlocking new revenue streams and support “experience-based services.”
Jenny Lindqvist, head of Ericsson’s cloud software and services business, said that “we’re still quite early on the 5G wave” given there is not yet full SA penetration yet, speaking to Light Reading last month following the vendor’s second quarter results.
She said there is still “a lot of upside” in 5G SA and markets are moving in a positive direction. Her reasons for positivity are threefold.
“The barriers have lowered to get SA up and deployed at scale; second, the business case is being proven that there is value in differentiated connectivity; and third, [there are] other drivers in terms of resilience and security and software freshness that comes with a more modern platform,” she said.
The latest Ericsson Mobility Report found 84 5G SA commercial network slicing offers, up from 65 six months ago.
