Communications

Cobham Wireless says its TM500 network tester can now validate all the main features of LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) up to and including Release 12 of the 3GPP specification. The system has also added support for carrier aggregation with unlicensed frequency bands as used for LTE-LAA (Licence Assisted Access), a major feature of 3GPP Release 13. LTE-LAA is a technology for carrier ...

Amiho Technology has introduced a wireless transceiver module which integrates two IoT-friendly radio interfaces – LoRa and the 169MHz Wireless Meter-Bus. The module is designed to support long-range links with its power output rated up to +28.5dBm. The AM091 module size is 17.8 x 20.3mm and it comes pre-loaded with the Cambridge-based firm’s software stack and drivers and is designed ...

Smartphones can have proximity sensing without requiring a hardware optical sensor, according to a Norway-based software company. According to Elliptic Labs at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this week, it is possible to give smartphones a proximity sensing function by installing software and using existing components on the phone. Mobile World Congress: Your Electronics Weekly guide » It is based on ultrasound ...

Samsung has launched its latest smartphones the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge this evening in Barcelona, on the eve of Mobile World Congress 2016. It is last year’s model, the S6/S6 edge, with more refinements. This is the problem all mobile phone firms have. There are few fundamental technology changes in the pipeline, so new smartphones are just refinements of ...

What is interesting about Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2016 is that the most exciting developments won’t be in mobile phones. As the mobile industry shows its technology in Barcelona this week (22-25 February) it will be health monitors smart watches, connected cars and smart cities which will grab the headlines and the interest, maybe. The mobile industry no longer only focuses ...

LG has launched the mix and match smartphone, ahead of Mobile World Congress which starts here in Barcelona tomorrow (22 February). As the mobile phone suppliers look at ways to innovate handset design, which has hardly changed in the last five years, LG has come up with the modular smartphone. If you want a B&O audio sound you plug in ...

Researchers at BT’s Adastral Park Labs in Ipswich say they have created a cloud radio access network (C–RAN) mobile service over copper. In partnership with US-based chip firm Cavium they used G.fast technology to deliver cellular data over copper lines at speeds of 150-200Mbit/s. The traditional backhaul connection is optical fibre and BT claims this will remove the need for mobile operators to ...

The growing interest in personal healthcare means that mobile device suppliers need to develop new expertise in biometric technologies. Mio Global, for example, has not only developed a wrist-strap fitness monitor, it has created its own metric for heart rate tracking. Dubbed Personal Activity Intelligence (PAI), it translates your heart rate data and personal profile information into one metric. This ...

Soitec has begun mass production of 300mm RF-SOI substrates for mobile communications. The 300mm version of Soitec’s RFeSI90 substrate enables more highly integrated ICs for 4G/LTE-Advanced communications and the next generation of wireless technologies, including 5G, says the company. There are 300mm RFeSI90 wafer samples available for product qualification. Soitec’s RF-SOI substrates are used in manufacturing antenna switches, antenna tuners, ...

Cree has joined Cisco’s Digital Ceiling ecosystem, offering Ethernet-powered smart lights. The Cisco partnership includes other light makers, plus hardware, middleware software and data analysis companies – Phillips and Microchip are among the members. Cisco sees a future for smart buildings where there are no mains power cables in a ceiling, only Ethernet cables connected with RJ45 plugs. These cables ...