Samsung hits 5G mmWave milestones; achieves industry-leading speed over 10km distance

Samsung Electronics has reached new milestones in Australia, achieving industry-leading speeds over 5G mmWave in a recent field trial conducted with NBN Co., the South Korean firm said on Monday.

"As the farthest 28GHz 5G mmWave Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) connection recorded by Samsung, this milestone demonstrates the expanded reach possible with this powerful spectrum, and its ability to efficiently deliver widespread broadband coverage across the country," Samsung said in a press release.

In addition, Samsung also achieved record-setting average downlink speeds of 1.75Gbps and uplink speeds of 61.5Mbps across a distance of 10km. At its peak, the company also reached a top downlink speed of 2.7Gbps over a 10km distance from the radio.

Commenting on this achievement, Junehee Lee, Executive Vice President and Head of R&D, Networks Business at Samsung Electronics, said, "This new 5G record proves the massive potential of mmWave technology, and its ability to deliver enhanced connectivity and capacity for addressing the last mile challenges in rural areas. We are excited to work with nbn to push the boundaries of 5G technology even further in Australia and tap the power of mmWave for customer benefit."

For this field trial, Samsung used in-house 28GHz Compact Macro and third-party 5G mmWave customer premise equipment (CPE). The Samsung Compact Macro is the industry's first integrated radio for mmWave spectrum that brings together a baseband, radio and antenna into a single form factor. The solution can support all frequencies within the mmWave spectrum.

"As we roll out the next evolution of our network to extend its reach for the benefit of homes and businesses across the country, we are excited to demonstrate the potential for 5G mmWave. nbn will be among the first in the world to deploy 5G mmWave technology at this scale, and achievements like Samsung's 10km milestone will pave the way for further developments in the ecosystem," said Ray Owen, Chief Technology Officer at NBN Co.