(JW Insights) Oct 13 -- Fifth-generation advanced base stations will supplement their 5G counterparts, and industrial scenarios such as flexible manufacturing will become the primary layout focus, according to the head of Huawei Technologies’ wireless 5G-A solutions, reported Yicai Global on October 12.

5G-A, also known as 5.5G, can be interpreted as the second stage of 5G, Sun Cheng told Yicai at the China Mobile Global Partner Conference held in Guangzhou on October 11. Download speeds will jump from 1 gigabyte in the 5G era to 10 GB in the 5G-A era, while upload speeds will surge from 100 megabytes to 1 GB, he added.

5.5G technology has been used in glasses-free 3D, new calling, intelligent vehicle networks, the Internet of Things, and other scenarios, Sun noted. It was also used for event broadcasting and communication in some venues during the recently concluded Asian Games in Hangzhou, he pointed out.

Shenzhen-based Huawei and China Mobile deployed nearly one thousand 5G-A base stations in Beijing, Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Shenzhen in the first half of this year, Sun added.

With technology rapidly developing and changing and demand for large language models, ChatGPT, and autonomous driving growing constantly, the network needs to continue evolving, said Ken Hu, the firm’s rotating chairman, adding that Huawei is working very hard on 5G-A.

Many industrial chain firms, including Huawei, ZTE, Qualcomm, and Unisoc Technologies, showed off their technologies and applications related to 5G new calling and 5G-A at the China Mobile Global Partner Conference, according to the Yicai Global report.

(Gao J/Yuan XY)