Summary

SRG just completed its 51st 5G benchmark study. For this endeavor we collaborated with Accuver Americas and Spirent Communications to conduct a benchmark study of 8Rx FWA CPEs and how they perform relative to 4Rx FWA CPEs. We tested in T-Mobile’s Band n41 network in the operator’s network outside of Minneapolis where Nokia is the infrastructure supplier. Highlights of the Report include the following: Our Thanks. We did this study with the support of Accuver Americas and Spirent Communications. Accuver provided us with its XCAL5 drive test software and XCAP post-processing software. We used XCAL5 to collect the chipset diagnostic messages and we used XCAP for the post processing of the data and subsequent analysis. We used Umetrix Data from Spirent Communications to generate the high bandwidth data transfers. Both companies have been trusted partners with us for nearly two decades. SRG is responsible for all analysis and commentary provided in this report. The Background. T-Mobile provided us with a commercial 4Rx and a non-commercial 8Rx FWA CPE. We used these CPEs to determine what, if any, performance advantage an 8Rx CPE has over a 4Rx CPE. After all, FWA services are bandwidth hogs with high customer expectations. Anything that can increase coverage and improve user data speeds / spectral efficiency helps the business case for operators. The Methodology. We locked both CPEs to a single 100 MHz Band n41 channel and to a serving cell PCI. We then executed 120 second downlink data transfers with each CPE at multiple locations, including near-cell and far-cell. We used 2 different cell sites and 3 different PCI values (cell sectors). We captured all chipset-related metrics, focusing largely on PDSCH/MAC throughput, RB allocations, MCS, MIMO layers, and radio conditions (RSRP/SINR). We also included a 5G smartphone at several locations to determine the performance differences between the two types of user equipment (UE). The Analysis. We compared RB normalized downlink throughput between the two CPEs at each location, as well as looking at why the throughput was different between the two CPEs. We focused on MCS and MIMO layers, as well as the average RSRP/SINR reported by the two CPEs. The Results. We observed a double digit increase in downlink throughput and an increase in coverage with the 8Rx CPE compared with the 4Rx CPE. The benefits of 8Rx varied as a function of the radio conditions. The comparative results with the smartphone were even more pronounced. What Happens Next? 8Rx will likely become a standard feature with FWA CPEs, just as at least two layers are now common / mandatory with 4G/5G and Wi-Fi. The gains are too important to miss out on.