Mobile & Wireless Roundup No. 163

Welcome to the 163rd edition of this newsletter. Someone I know has a useful presentation for me on his laptop but is unable to find it. It reminded me how often we all run into this problem. Many downloads from events or the web arrive with names that mean very little. If you do not rename them immediately, they quickly become impossible to locate. Even when you save files with a more helpful name, the real challenge appears months or years later when you can no longer remember what you called them or where you stored them. Unless there is a clear structure or a dedicated folder for these files, the search can be surprisingly frustrating.

This is something I encounter regularly on Windows. I am not sure if Mac users face quite the same issue, but I suspect everyone has their own version of the problem. Over time, I have found that good search tools make all the difference. Some of you may already know that I am a big fan of a utility called Everything from Voidtools. It is small, fast and incredibly effective, especially if you spend a lot of time looking for files on your machine. Compared to the default search, it feels like a breath of fresh air.

For those of you who do not know me, I am a technologist with more than 25 years of experience in mobile wireless technology, currently working as an independent advisor, analyst, consultant and trainer. This newsletter brings together my latest posts along with other stories and updates that caught my attention since the last edition.

⦿ 6G

• Thierry Van de Velde on LinkedIn: "This article reviews the relationship between 3GPP standards and Core Network Function implementations (commercial products)…" (link)

• Samsung and SK Telecom Join Forces To Lead 6G Era With AI-RAN Technology (PR)

• Free 6G Training - AI for Wireless: Evaluating Neural Receivers with Test and Measurement and Digital Twins (link)

⦿ 5G

• OpenSignal: How 5G is reshaping the MENA region: GCC leads as the rest of the region gradually transitions (link)

• KDDI: Introducing "L4S" technology to achieve low latency in 5G SA (link in Japanese)

⦿ 4G/LTE

• Johan Norén on LinkedIn: 4G Sunset in Sweden came early, for some... (link) – good discussions in the comments

⦿ 2G/3G

• Rudolf van der Berg on LinkedIn: "How the shutdown of 2G and 3G becomes an executive nightmare in Sweden. Emergency calls don't work seamlessly over 4G, unlike we are used to over 2G and 3G…" (link)

⦿ Private Networks

• Private Networks Technology Blog: TELUS Brings Private 5G to Calgary International Airport (link)

• GSMA 5G Solutions White Paper - 5G in Action: Industrial Use Cases Driving Digital Transformation in India (link)

• Private Networks Technology Blog: Hong Kong’s First 5G Private Network Powers a Smart Air Cargo Terminal (link)

⦿ Spectrum

• Laura Sear on LinkedIn: "My colleague Cameron Hill went through all the public responses to the EU 2 GHz MSS consultation. One of the key issues is how the band should be segmented…" (link)

• Dean Bubley’s Review: Review: RSPG Opinion on Upper 6GHz in Europe (link)

⦿ Telecoms Infrastructure, Small Cells, Antennas & others

• The 3G4G Blog - IET Lecture by Prof. Andy Sutton: Point to Point Microwave Radio Systems (link)

• Telecoms Infrastructure Blog: Nokia and Citymesh Bring Drones-in-a-Box to Life Across Belgium (link)

• Paul Rhodes on LinkedIn: "…All these site were built 8 years ago as CRAN, mostly with small 2T2R Omni antennas. Now they have all evolved with tenants needs with directional 8T8R, multi-band-4T4R replacing – and even supplementing – the original antenna…" (link)

• Light Reading: Airtel flags 'sub-standard' gear from Tejas (link)

• Paul Rhodes on LinkedIn - Saturday School: International Streetworks II (link)

⦿ IoT / M2M / Smart Homes

• Telefónica consolidates its position as one of the global leaders in IoT connectivity, according to Transforma Insights (PR)

• Chris Cockings on LinkedIn: Test Data Connection With A Ping Test (link)

• AT&T Recognized as a Leader in Global IoT Connectivity Rankings Due to Breakthrough Innovations (PR)

• Chris Cockings on LinkedIn: Ever wonder how a CAT-M or NB-IoT device sets its clock before reaching an NTP server? (link)

⦿ Satellites, HAPS, Drones, UAVs & Space

• A simplified view of 5G Non-Terrestrial Networks Architecture by Rohde & Schwarz (link)

• Proximus Global and Starlink partner to expand direct-to-cell satellite connectivity in Europe (PR)

• KDDI: Successful development of a frequency-modulated photonic crystal laser suitable for space optical communications (PR in Japanese)

⦿ Security & Privacy

• Denis Laskov on LinkedIn - Hacking MediaTek Wi-Fi: Multiple RCEs in the world’s second-most popular Wi-Fi chipset (link)

• CommsRisk: Why Do So Many People Say the UK Needs Traceback When the UK Already Has Traceback? (link)

• Dmitry Kurbatov on LinkedIn - GSMA’s Telecom Security: The Cost Is Exploding (link)

• Denis Laskov on LinkedIn - Cybersecurity of modern UAV: attacks on flying IoT with sensors, internet, and embedded AI (link)

• Silke Holtmanns on LinkedIn: "The common discussion for telco is about LEO satellites, but GEO satellites are also used for backhaul communication. Since the communication goes via the air the encryption of the satellite backhaul takes a bit different priority…" (link)

⦿ AI, ML & Automation

• FutureNet Insights: Four practical strategies to accelerate Autonomous Operations journey (link)

• Ryan Jeffery on LinkedIn - Fighting the Telco Immune System with AI: The Moviestar Strategy (link)

⦿ Wi-Fi

• Dean Bubley on LinkedIn: "Last week I attended WiFi NOW Global Congress in Dubai. It had a great set of presentations and panels that covered a range of #WiFi themes…" (link)

⦿ Public Safety Networks

• The ETSI Railway Communication Plugtests™ Report is Out (PR) – “Testing covered Mission Critical Services (MCX) over 5G networks for railway and public safety applications in line with 3GPP Rel-18 as well as railway-oriented features such as Adhoc Group Call, IP connectivity, interconnection and migration scenarios.”

⦿ Other News and Technology Stuff

• Benedict Evans Keynote Address: AI Eats the World (video)

• The Guardian: Ocado shares fall 17% after US partner announces warehouse closures (link)

⦿ Picture of the week: This week I am sharing a tower photo from John Celentano. In his LinkedIn post he explains that these are repurposed AT&T Long Lines repeater sites now used for mobile service. They were originally part of AT&T’s long distance network, carrying calls across the country long before fibre cable took over that role. The horn antennas at the top are no longer in service but were left in place. They once operated on 4 GHz or 6 GHz analogue radio, providing point to point links over line of sight paths of around 30 miles.

Happy to hear your thoughts. Feel free let me know what worked, what didn’t, how I can make this better, etc. Get in touch over LinkedIn!

PDF version of this and previous newsletters are available here.