5g is the popular star of this MWC Shanghai Exhibition and the focus of ZTE. As one of the leaders of 5g technology, ZTE has made a lot of progress in 5g standards, technology, testing and application.

The biggest highlight of ZTE 5g in this exhibition is that it has put forward a breakthrough coverage solution. It is well known in the industry that the higher the frequency, the weaker the coverage capacity. Millions of base stations have been built in 4G, and the 5g spectrum distribution will be higher than 4G. If the coverage technology is not well improved, there will be serious base station location problems and high construction costs.

"5g coverage is the most concerned issue in the industry." In an interview with c114 and other media, Dr. Xiang Jiying, chief scientist of ZTE, pointed out that 5g NR can achieve 4G equivalent or better network coverage even without adding a new site. At present, the coverage of 4G and 5g.5g is the most widely used in the industry. Therefore, the coverage of 4G and 5g.5g is the highest in the industry, which is better than that of fd1.5g and 5g.

Xiang Jiying said that due to three unreasonable assumptions in the traditional link calculation, the actual coverage experienced by users is always worse than the calculated value. At the same time, the contribution of 5g multiple antennas to coverage is also seriously underestimated. After correcting the above unreasonable factors and adding 5g to the enhancement of control channel, 5g can still meet the requirements of seamless coverage without increasing station address, although 5g works in a higher 3.5G frequency band.

In addition, ZTE officially released the 5g overall solution at this exhibition, providing architecture support for operators who took the lead in deploying 5g commercial networks in 2018. Based on the comprehensive cloud network architecture design, the scheme covers 5g wireless access, core network and bearer network, provides a more open application environment and richer business types, meets the future 5g standard technology evolution, and promotes the diversified development of operators and industry value.

Based on this scheme, ZTE and Guangdong Mobile took the lead in building a 5g test network in Guangzhou University Town in May this year to make preliminary preparations for 5g pre commercialization. Xiang Jiying said that due to ZTE's commercial accumulation in the 2.6g frequency band and the adoption of its own chip design, a 5g new air interface was realized through small changes in the software. "Take massive MIMO technology as an example. It is the core technology of 5g. Now there are many enterprises doing it, but it is difficult to do it well. ZTE has invested in R & D and launched the pre5g plan as early as 2013. The commercial practice of pre5g is very helpful to ZTE's 5g strategy."

Meanwhile, on the terminal side, ZTE, China Mobile and Qualcomm jointly announced that they would carry out interoperability test and OTA field test based on 5g NR specification. Xiang Jiying believes that the three enterprises have a greater voice in the field of 5g standards, and the tripartite cooperation has a strong influence in determining new air ports.

Xiang Jiying said that compared with the 4G era, ZTE has stronger strength in the 5g field. It has become an important participant in the field of standards and a leader in the field of product technology. The continuous release of new technologies and solutions confirms ZTE's attitude towards the future 5g market. So, what are the main factors that can jump start?

First, the external environment is more favorable. China and the Asia Pacific region are the most active in 5g business, especially China, which is about four years later than Europe in the 4G era, and its policy and industrial investment in 5g are in a leading position. Both China and Asia Pacific are the traditional strong markets of ZTE, which are more in line with the ideas of operators. The commercial practice of pre5g also provides a sample for the smooth evolution of 5g.

Secondly, Chinese equipment manufacturers are more radical in technology investment in the future. Of course, this is also a positive cycle of and market development. According to ZTE's disclosure at the exhibition, ZTE has thousands of R & D engineers to continuously carry out 5g technology R & D, and will further increase 5g R & D investment this year, reaching 2 billion yuan per year.

"There are not many detours between 4G and 5g. China insists on investing in TDD technology. This advantage will continue to the 5g era, which also promotes China's more active investment in 5g." Xiang Jiying also introduced a factor.

For ZTE, taking the lead in investing in research and development of massive MIMO technology is the right direction. 5g commercial still has a few years to develop, test and game. Enterprises that grasp the opportunity will undoubtedly occupy a better position. This year and next will be a key moment to compete for the right to speak in the market.