About LTE Advanced pro
Today LTE Advanced pro operates in three bands of 800 MHz, 1800 MHz and 2600 MHz. Base stations of the 2600 MHz range are used at the busy base stations of Minsk and all regional centers, and many district centers of the country.
LTE coverage area (4G):
LTE 800:
800 MHz band (and lower bands) has a long range and is intended to spread LTE's wide geographic coverage. Networks in rural areas are deployed exactly in this range.
LTE 1800:
1800 MHz is the main band for providing coverage of the mobile communication network using LTE technology in population center. Using the 1800 MHz band provides a reasonable compromise between range, room penetration and bandwidth.
LTE 2600:
Using 2600 MHz band improves network bandwidth, and therefore increases data transfer speed in places of the greatest concentration of 4G users. Places for such base stations are selected based on their workload and the needs of users. So users can use 4G communication even more comfortably.
Information on network coverage is indicative, actual network coverage and actual data reception /transmission speed depends on the type and characteristics of the user’s device, radio conditions at the user's location, relief and meteorological conditions, the number of users with devices operating in the same cell.
The LTE network implementation project is one of the key projects in the beCloud product package. Commercial operation of the Unified Mobile Cellular Telecommunications Network using LTE technology began in December 2015 in Minsk.
The contractor for the first stage of the project development was «Bel Huawei Technologies», the Belarusian representative office of a major Chinese vendor «Huawei», responsible for the timely delivery of the equipment for the LTE Advanced pro network, its installation and adjusting works, as well as for the commissioning of the ready-made systems to the customer.
LTE continues to be the dominant technology in mobile telecommunications. According to the international association GSA (Global mobile Suppliers Association) 807 networks have already been launched in the world (as of March 2021) and 62% of subscribers worldwide use this technology.
What is LTE Advanced pro technology for?
- Increasing the data transmission speed in wireless networks,
- Ability to provide a wider range of services to the LTE users,
- Reducing the cost of the services provided,
- Increased flexibility in using the existing systems,
- Increasing the availability of mobile communications for subscribers of the mobile operators.
In 2017 Ericsson Nikola Tesla Corporation supplied the equipment and put into operation the LTE network in three more regions of the country – Gomel, Brest and Mogilev, and also provided the appropriate equipment support – design, installation and commissioning. The partnership with beCloud included the second phase of construction of the Belarusian 4G network, as well as the necessary software updates and the provision of the related services.
«LTE Advanced pro is interesting for users, first of all, for its speeds. The speeds in the LTE Advanced pro network are significantly higher than in the 3G network. When planning the network, we tried to find a reasonable compromise between the coverage and the network capacity, so it can be argued that the average speeds are about 30 Mbit/s but subscribers have no limits to reach the same 100 or 140 Mbit/s», says Mikhail Duka, Deputy Director General for beCloud telecommunications.
A year later, the number of 4G base stations in Belarus exceeded one thousand, beCloud technical specialists recorded an explosive growth in the volume of the downloaded data. The thousandth base is located in the area of Bykachino settlement of, in the Chinese-Belarusian Industrial Park «Great Stone».
In June 2021 the number of 4G base stations has already exceeded three thousand. The 3000th base station was the base station in the 800 MHz range located in the locality of Gruzdovo of the Polochany village council.
The popularity of the technology, first of all, is explained by the increased user’s interest, the number of base stations launched into commercial operation both in Minsk and in the regions of Belarus, as well as the expansion of the LTE network. The main advantage of the LTE technology lies in the much higher mobile Internet speeds. And if the maximum incoming speed for subscribers of Belarusian 3G networks is limited to 42 Mbit/s, then in a 4G network it reaches 150 Mbit/s and more (with an average speed of 25 Mbit/s in Minsk).
«Such changes allowed the infrastructure operator to unconditionally provide a higher data transfer rate for Belarusian users even with the continued high load on base stations. I will add that such significant changes in the market of mobile services in Belarus have not existed until now. beCloud, as an infrastructure operator, the only one developing technology in our region, has managed to radically change the telecom business and in just three years make 4G available both in Minsk and in the regions», says Oleg Sedelnik, Director General of beCloud.
The capacity of the LTE network has increased by a quarter thanks to the additional frequency resource received by the beCloud in the 1800 MHz range. In addition, the operator is constantly working on the construction of new base stations. Thus, more than 2 thousand 4G base stations are already operating in the 1800 range.
In March 2019 the infrastructure operator announced the provision of access to the 4G network to the mobile operator A1. A1 subscribers in Minsk and Minsk region, as well as Gomel, were the first to use data transmission in the fourth generation network.
Since August 2020, the use of the 800 MHz band has been launched in the Gomel region. Currently, the 800 MHz band is available throughout the Republic of Belarus. This made it possible to provide the possibility of using LTE technology to 98.9% of the population.