Bharti Airtel announced on Monday that its network will be the first in India to operate on both 5G Standalone (SA) and 5G Non-Standalone (NSA) modes. This means Airtel will offer both 5G SA and NSA modes to customers. Back in 2022, during the Q2 FY23 earnings call, Gopal Vittal, CEO of Bharti Airtel, highlighted that the company had started testing the Standalone (SA) mode for 5G. The company primarily focused on enterprise use cases, as there are currently few consumer use cases where SA and NSA modes significantly differ in user experience. According to the company, Airtel 5G is now available across 28 states and 8 union territories.
Also Read: Airtel Expands Wi-Fi Service to 2.6 Million New Households in Punjab and Karnataka
Airtel Spectrum Utilisation
Airtel holds Sub-GHz spectrum in the 800 MHz (FDD) band in four circles and the 900 MHz (FDD) band in the remaining circles. Leveraging this spectrum, Airtel can provide coverage in all of its circles based on its radio planning and deployments. In the mid-bands, Airtel holds spectrum in the 1800 MHz (FDD), 2100 MHz (FDD), and 2300 MHz (TDD) bands. In the 3.5 GHz (TDD) band, Airtel holds 100 MHz nationwide, and in the mmWave 26 GHz (TDD) band, the company holds 800 MHz in each circle across India.
At best, the Sub-GHz bands can deliver speeds of around 8-10 Mbps, provide indoor coverage, and reach far-flung areas. Airtel holds a significant mid-band spectrum, which can deliver both coverage and capacity and work in tandem with the capacity provided by the 5G band (3300 MHz).
Spectrum Refarming
So far, Airtel has primarily used the mid-band for its 4G network, but this is set to change as the company announced that it is refarming its mid-band spectrum to expand 5G services on its 1800, 2100, and 2300 MHz bands across the country. This means that most of Airtel's spectrum will be dedicated to providing 5G services, enhancing 5G speeds and coverage for customers. This expansion will address the growing traffic demand on the 5G network, the company said on Monday.
Airtel appears to be leveraging Sub-GHz carriers for coverage while using other bands for capacity on 5G. The company is currently offering 5G in NSA mode, utilising the 3300 MHz and mid-band spectrum. Additionally, according to Airtel, the 3.5 GHz band extends coverage by at least 30 percent more on the downlink, which translates to an extra 100 meters of coverage in urban areas, with the mid-band providing the uplink.
The company did not mention anything about its 4G network in its announcement on Monday. However, we believe that, based on Dynamic Spectrum Allocation and Cloud deployments, Airtel can offer both 4G and 5G on mid-bands, effectively utilising its spectrum resources. The implementation can vary based on metrics the company deems best for its business use cases.
Seamless Switching Between 5G Modes
If Airtel rolls out 5G SA, customers will be able to use both network modes based on handset compatibility. To ensure a seamless experience between the two network modes, Airtel said it has successfully piloted seamless SA and NSA switching on its 5G network in select circles. This means customers can switch seamlessly between the two networks based on availability.
The pilot for SA and NSA switching has been conducted in Rewari, Chennai, and Bhubaneswar, with encouraging results, the company said, noting that Airtel is now ready to launch Standalone technology. "This capability on the 5G network will enable Airtel to introduce innovative applications, services, and solutions through open APIs, differentiated connectivity, and a service-based architecture."
OEMs to Push Software Update
Airtel also mentioned that smartphone Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) will push combined NSA and SA software updates with carrier aggregation (CA) functionality to enable handsets to leverage the upgraded network. This will allow Airtel to deliver 5G carrier aggregation (CA) on multiple bands, including the newly refarmed mid-bands.
Also Read: Bharti Airtel Completes 5G NSA Cloud RAN Trial in India
Airtel 5G NSA Cloud RAN Trial
Airtel recently announced that it has completed its first 5G non-standalone (NSA) Cloud RAN trial with a vendor in India. Conducted in an over-the-air environment, the trial used 3.5 GHz spectrum for 5G and 2100 MHz for 4G, achieving a throughput exceeding 1.2 Gbps over Airtel's commercial network with user devices. This indicates that Airtel can provide an enhanced 5G NSA experience through cloudification.
Also Read: Airtel Achieves Peak Speeds of 4.7 Gbps on mmWave for 5G FWA
Airtel FWA Trial
Coming to FWA, in February 2024, Airtel successfully demonstrated 5G functionality using the 26 GHz band (mmWave) on its network. Peak speeds of 4.7 Gbps were achieved during the testing, showcasing the applicability of mmWave for high network capacity requirements.
Airtel RedCap Trial
In October 2023, Airtel announced the successful testing of pre-commercial Reduced Capability (RedCap) software on its 5G network. This testing, carried out in collaboration with technology partners, is claimed to be the first implementation and validation of RedCap in India. RedCap is designed for IoT devices and applications that need moderate data rates and connectivity but don't require the high-speed or ultra-low latency of standard 5G services. This includes use cases like smart meters, industrial sensors, and some wearable devices.
Also Read: Airtel Tests RedCap Technology on Its 5G Network With Ericsson
Conclusion
Considering Airtel's recent developments, it seems that the company is allocating the majority of its spectrum resources for 5G, while continuing to offer 2G/4G via its cloud infrastructure. This approach aligns most of the network resources to deliver high-capacity networks while extending coverage and enhancing customer experience.
