Maxis has recently obtained approval from the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission to conduct 5G trials utilising 200MHz of 3.5GHz C-band spectrum. From their tests at two of its trial sites at Subang Jaya, they have managed to achieve 2.96Gbps for a single user peak speeds.
According to Maxis, they have conducted two types of test. The first test is based on 5G New Radio (NR) Carrier Aggregation (CA) which was conducted to showcase single-user peak speeds. In the next test, they have tested 5G MU-MIMO to showcase single-cell peak speeds with multiple concurrent user usage.
The 5G tests are part of the ongoing 5G Malaysia Demonstration Projects which aims to facilitate, develop and foster 5G use cases in a live but controlled environment. Previously, telcos were only provided 100MHz of C-Band spectrum which offered lower typical speeds between 1.1 to 1.76Gbps.
Maxis Chief Technology and Information Officer, Morten Bangsgaard said “We are pleased to see a positive performance from our current trial sites. We will continue to upgrade our transport networks to support powerful gigabit speeds, fitting to the capacity demands of new technology. The new record underlines our 5G leadership and a continuation of the many firsts that Maxis has achieved so far.”
5G promises ultra-low latency as well as a stronger and more reliable connection which will allow consumers to download media faster and at a higher resolution. On top of that, it also offers a higher capacity to support massive connections which can enable smart homes and cities. For businesses, 5G will open up new opportunities and use cases that can revolutionise current industries including healthcare, retail, manufacturing and more.
3.5GHz is among the four bands identified by MCMC for the usage of 5G. The 700MHz and 3.5GHz bands will be assigned to a consortium instead of individual telcos to minimise deployment cost and to prevent duplication of infrastructure. At the moment, MCMC plans to release 2x30MHz for 700MHz and 100MHz for the 3.5GHz. More frequencies can be considered at a later stage.
