Intel to update 5G testing equipment to meet the new 5G NR standards

The tech giant, Intel Corp. said on Thursday that it was updating 5G equipments which will allow telecom companies like AT&T Inc and Verizon Communication Inc to run trails based on new standards to be released this year in December. The 5G standard will be finalized with a goal to accelerate commercial 5G trials and deployments while the final standalone 5G new radio(NR) standards is being developed.

The trial device by Intel looks like a large box and can handle the processing needs for 5G connection. The trial equipment will begin to support the new non-standalone NR standards when available in the fourth quarter of 2017. To accelerate development times in 5G, the trial platform is powered by high-performance Intel FPGAs and Intel Core processors. The telecom equipment manufacturers will be able to test interoperability with devices.

“Since we announced the Intel 5G Mobile Trial Platform at MWC in 2016, we’ve been collaborating with industry TEM leaders like Ericsson and Nokia and participating in trials with operators like AT&T, Korea Telecom, NTT Docomo and Verizon”, said Asha Keddy, Vice president, Client and IoT Businesses and Systems Architecture, and General manager, Next Generation and Standards, at Intel Corp. “But we’re not done. We will continue to test and drive results and innovations into the full standalone 5G NR standards, which are expected at the end of 2018.”

Intel is approaching quickly towards the initial milestone for the 5G NR, just like LTE was for 4G. This is a huge step forward for 5G and an array of technology and services.