Orange Polska and Ericsson launched a 5G test network in Warsaw

These are the first such big 5G test network in Poland, evaluating the latest modern technology in urban conditions. Orange and Ericsson placed on air 9 sites in the Warsaw district of Ochota and Powiśle where it provides a speed close de 900Mbps.

Ericsson as well as Orange Polska are conducting tests to get optimum solutions from network monitoring side as well as meeting the needs of consumers. The devices constituting the test network operate on the basis of the 80 MHz channel in the 3.4 – 3.6 GHz band (this band is planned for the launch of the 5G network in Poland) .The tests will  use the available 5G devices, including even more than 100 smartphones as well as routers.

” Today access to a fast network is what access to roads and electricity used to be” – said Marek Zagórski, Minister of Digital Affairs. “For Poland, the 5th generation network is an opportunity for rapid development of the economic climate. We intend to do every little thing to let Polish business benefit from it” – he included.

” Today we are one step closer to launching the Polish fifth generation mobile network. We are technologically ready for this challenge. After more than a year of trials in laboratories and in the field, we have launched a network operating in the capital city. We will invite our customers to those tests, providing them with new 5G smartphones manufactured especially for Orange” – stated Jean-François Fallacher, CEO of Orange Polska.

” Ericsson has been leading the worldwide 5G rollout and now we bring the same technology to the heart of Warsaw. Our collaboration with Orange Polska together with our ongoing investment across Poland contributes to a wave of 5G innovation making Poland one of the leading nations for 5G in Europe. – claimed Martin Mellor, Head of Ericsson Poland.

The sites have actually been located in such a way that they produce a consistent range and allow activity between them without disrupting the connection with 5G. The solution was integrated with the backbone fiber optic network of Orange with 10Gbps throughput. This allows Orange to get a speed up to 1Gbps ( 10 times more than the current 4G connection).

Orange is considered the first providers to launch the 5G trials in real conditions.  It is the only one to use the 3.4 – 3.8 GHz and 26 – 28 GHz bands. The tests conducted with all leading providers have permitted the operator to obtain the experience required to deploy a 5G network. Probably, the very first business roll-outs will take place in the years 2020 – 2021, after the operator obtains the 5G frequencies for the construction of the network