ARN

Telstra announces LTE category 6 device

Huawei Wi-Fi hotspot world first coming to Australia

Huawei and Telstra are partnering to launch the world’s first long term evolution (LTE) category six-compatible mobile broadband device in Australia.

The companies claim the Telstra Wi-Fi 4G Advanced Pro X is a battery-powered mobile hotspot that can operate continuously for up to ten hours and share a 4G connection with up to ten devices.

Telstra and Huawei said this makes it possible to make use of 4G on existing Wi-Fi enabled tablets, laptops and smartphones.

The announcement was made at the Mobile World Conference in Barcelona. and follows live trials of the device conducted in the 700MHz and 1800MHz bands in Australia.Telstra’s 4G network currently operates on the 1800MHz band, the device will operate on this spectrum at launch.

Telstra director of devices, Andrew Volard, said the telco was working to get 700MHz-compatible devices into customers’ hands ahead of the introduction of high-speed 700MHz coverage early in 2015.

“The Telstra Wi-Fi 4G Advanced Pro X will be one of our first devices that’s ready to take advantage of the superior reach and speeds that we’re aiming to deliver when we introduce 700MHz spectrum and team it with our existing 4G spectrum,” he said.

Telstra claims that the device allows for a significant increase in peak downlink speeds and capacity by bringing together two separate spectrum bands. The company said that the Advanced Pro X will be capable of theoretical download speeds of 300Mbps. Actual speeds will invariably be lower and depend on a number of variables including network conditions.

Huawei Australia chief technology officer, Peter Rossi, said, “LTE Category 6 with Carrier Aggregation has the potential to offer incredible download speeds to mobile broadband users, and the huge battery in the Telstra Wi-Fi 4G Advanced Pro X will allow users to keep more of their WiFi devices connected for longer.”