Airtel All Set To Roll Out 5G In India In Partnership With Qualcomm: How Will This Work?

Bharti Airtel will introduce 5G to Indian telecom in partnership with chipmaker Qualcomm. The latter’s 5G Radio Access Network technology stack will be used to roll out a commercial 5G network.

This development comes on the back of news that Reliance Jio is already moving ahead with its own 5G offering. 

To Aid Growth and Development

Rajen Vagadia, president of Qualcomm India, highlighted the need for 5G networks in a country long overdue for socio-economic growth and development. The opportunity to facilitate the same together with Airtel is appreciated.

5G Trials 

Pre-launch trials will commence from June, while the partnered brands wait for the government-conducted spectrum auction which will be followed by commercial deployment. 

Meanwhile, Airtel has already wrapped up its 5G service test run in Hyderabad, claiming to be the first telco in India to do so. Oppo Find X2 Pro and the Oppo Reno5 Pro were the phones used in the test.

The Telecom-Phonemaker Union

The telecom ministry has suggested a 3-month trial. The main players in the game are Airtel, Vodafone Idea and Reliance Jio while the equipment vendors will be Samsung, Nokia and Ericsson.

A probable scenario has Jio partnering with Samsung, Nokia joining hands with Airtel and Vi (Voda-Idea) going with Ericsson.

After the trial run is over, the spectrum auction will follow in October with companies already having some knowledge on requirements and limitations owing to the tests.

All this is good news for avid internet users who can expect dazzling speeds (up to 10x faster than 4G) and low latency. Think seconds to download GB-size files, and 4K definition streaming without delay.

Apple-6G?

Not one to be left behind, Apple may have started work on 6G already, according to open positions advertised for wireless system research engineers for current and next-generation networks.

Also lending some credence to this speculation is the fact that the positions are for its Silicon Valley and San Diego offices, where top minds work on wireless technology development and chip design.

“In this role you will be at the centre of a cutting-edge research group responsible for creating next generation disruptive radio access technologies over the next decade,” read the listing.

It should be noted, however, that we would have to wait for another decade before 6G makes its way to the commercial market. 

Airtel Triggers 5G War: Becomes 1st Telco To Test 5G Network, learn more.