Event Analysis

Earl J. Lum +1-650-430-2221 elum@ejlwireless.com

Mobile World Congress 2013 Mobile Backhaul Summary-Microwave/mmWave Radios March 2013

Entire contents 2013 EJL Wireless Research LLC. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction of this publication in any form without prior written permission is strictly forbidden and will be prosecuted to the fully extent of US and International laws. The transfer of this publication in either paper or electronic form to unlicensed third parties is strictly forbidden. The information contained herein has been obtained from sources EJL Wireless Research LLC deems reliable. EJL Wireless Research disclaims all warranties as to the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of such information. EJL Wireless Research LLC shall have no liability for errors, omissions or inadequacies in the information contained herein or for the interpretation thereof. The reader assumes sole responsibility for the selection of these materials to achieve its intended results. The opinions expressed herein are subject to change without notice.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
EVENT RESEARCH BRIEF MWC2013 MICROWAVE/MMWAVE RADIOS................ 3
Summary...................................................................................................... 3 Aviat Networks .............................................................................................. 4 BridgeWave Communications........................................................................... 4 Cambium Networks ........................................................................................ 5 Cambridge Broadband Networks ...................................................................... 5 CCS ............................................................................................................. 6 Ceragon Networks.......................................................................................... 6 DragonWave ................................................................................................. 7 E-Band Communications ................................................................................. 7 Ericsson........................................................................................................ 8 Exalt Communications .................................................................................... 8 Huawei Technologies ...................................................................................... 9 Intracom Telecom .......................................................................................... 9 LINKRA S.r.l .................................................................................................10 LigoWave.....................................................................................................10 NEC Corporation ...........................................................................................11 Nokia Siemens Networks................................................................................12 SIAE Microelettronica.....................................................................................12 Siklu ...........................................................................................................13 Sub10 Systems ............................................................................................13 Taqua LLC....................................................................................................14 Tarana Wireless ............................................................................................14

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EXHIBITS
Exhibit Exhibit Exhibit Exhibit Exhibit Exhibit Exhibit Exhibit Exhibit Exhibit Exhibit Exhibit Exhibit Exhibit Exhibit Exhibit Exhibit Exhibit Exhibit Exhibit Exhibit 1: BridgeWave Flex4G Radio ................................................................................................. 4 2: Cambium Networks Gigatower ..........................................................................................5 3: Cambridge Broadband VectraStar Metro, Gen 1 (left) and Gen 2 (right) ................................. 5 4: CCS SON Multipoint Solution............................................................................................. 6 5: Ceragon FibeAir IP-20C Radio ........................................................................................... 6 6: DragonWave Avenue Link Lite ........................................................................................... 7 7: E-Band Communications E-Link Mini .................................................................................. 7 8: Ericsson Mini Link PT3060................................................................................................. 8 9: Huawei Gen 2 E-Band Radio ............................................................................................. 9 10: Intracom StreetNode...................................................................................................... 9 11: LINKRA Optical ODU Interface Cover .............................................................................. 10 12: LINKRA IDUGE/IDUGE-T............................................................................................... 10 13: LigoWave Unity Radio................................................................................................... 10 14: NEC iPASOLINK EX ...................................................................................................... 11 15: NEC iPASOLINK SX ...................................................................................................... 11 16: NSN mmwave Radio..................................................................................................... 12 17: SIAE 2x2 MIMO ALFOplus2 Radio................................................................................... 12 18: Siklu EtherHaul-600T Radio .......................................................................................... 13 19: Sub10 Liberator V100 Radio.......................................................................................... 13 20: Taqua Remote Backhaul Module (RBM) Unit .................................................................... 14 21: Tarana Wireless AbsoluteAir Solution ............................................................................. 14

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EVENT RESEARCH BRIEF MWC2013 MICROWAVE/MMWAVE RADIOS

Summary
Hola des de Barcelona! We are presenting a summary of all the radio backhaul vendors who exhibited at MWC this year. We were able to visit 19 out of the 21 companies presented in this summary. There was just not enough time over the four day period! The show was great this year for the single reason that I was NOT robbed! I hope that other attendees were as fortunate as me. Small cell backhaul was a major theme with 6-42GHz, 60GHz, 70/80GHz and sub 6GHz NLoS solutions being exhibited by the vendors. Several vendors were focused on multipoint solutions with the rest offering traditional point to point solutions. We continue to believe that a combination of PTP and PMP solutions will end up in mobile operator networks as no one solution will be able to provide it all due to the complex nature of dense urban street level deployments. Some of the stories that we heard at the show with regards to street level deployments were hilarious and really highlighted issues that are normally not considered with tower or rooftop deployments for mobile backhaul. Pretty much, the theme this year was MIMO and QAM, QAM, QAM. Everyone was demonstrating MIMO and 1024/2048QAM. Next year we will probably see 4096QAM. We believe that Layer 2 functionality is becoming standardized with the radio solution with Layer 3 beginning to appear and we expect this to become more main stream in 2014. We do note Ericsson's approach to using traditional PTP radios in an NLoS application and reflecting and refracting the link and still being able to achieve over 300Mbps at 28GHz. Please see our reports on the PTP Radio market and on macrocell BTS, microcell BTS and picocell BTS for more detailed market analysis and information regarding these industry segments.

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Aviat Networks
Aviat Networks didn't have a booth at the event this year and hosted meetings outside the venue. The company discussed three products that are due to be shipping in 2013: WTM3200 is an all outdoor packet radio for 6-38GHz using 1024QAM supporting 508Mbps Ethernet throughput on a single channel. This product is now shipping to customers worldwide and in trials with Tier 1 mobile operators. WTM3300 second generation E band radio which is in development and scheduled for release in 2013 CTR8500 is part of the new CTR8000 family of radios and will be undergoing customer evaluations in the coming months and will be commercially available by June 2013.

BridgeWave Communications
BridgeWave announced its Flex4G family of E-band 70/80GHz multi-gigabit radios which provide 1Gbps full duplex throughput in a 250MHz channel using only 32QAM and includes a 5 port Layer 2 switch. Two versions of the radio are available, the Flex4G-2500 supporting 2.5Gbps and the Flex4G-1250 supporting 1.25Gbps. The dimensions are 33cm x 21.9cm x 6.4cm with a weight of 3 kg. Exhibit 1: BridgeWave Flex4G Radio

Source: BridgeWave Communications

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Cambium Networks
Cambium Networks, ex Motorola Solutions, unveiled its Gigatower solution for small cell backhaul. The product is a double stacked configuration of 6x90Mbps per tier or a total of 1.08Gbps using its Canopy PMP 450 platform. The solution is targeting the 5.4GHz and 5.8GHz frequency bands initially with support for the 2.4GHz and 3.65GHz bands and possibly even the 4.9GHz band for public safety. The subscriber units can support up to 90Mbps. Exhibit 2: Cambium Networks Gigatower

Source: EJL Wireless Research LLC (February 2013)

Cambridge Broadband Networks

Cambridge Broadband launched its Gen 1 VectraStar Metro radio product for small cell backhaul street level installations. This radio can support 300Mbps for a small cell site and up to 2.4Gbps at the hub. The Gen 2 version can support up to 750Mbps at the small cell site and 3 Gbps at the hub. This solution is targeting the 26/27/28GHz frequency bands. Exhibit 3: Cambridge Broadband VectraStar Metro, Gen 1 (left) and Gen 2 (right)

Source: Cambridge Broadband Networks

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CCS
CCS showcased its SON multipoint to multipoint and point to multipoint system at MWC. This was first introduced at the Layer123 event back in October 2012 in London. This is a 28GHz LoS solution however the unit has a 270 degree horizontal and 20 degree vertical field of view so alignment can be done very quickly via the antenna architecture. The unit is approximately 4kg in weight and 4-4.5L in volume. The capacity is 450Mbps with a 125uS latency and each unit can create logical connections to up to 16 other units. Other area based frequency band products that will be available in the future are 26GHz, 32GHz and 42GHz. The company recently completed a 4.5 million round of venture funding. Exhibit 4: CCS SON Multipoint Solution

Source: CCS

Ceragon Networks
Ceragon's booth focused on its 3H vision of Holistic HetNet Hauling with a focus on its newly launched FibeAir IP-20C product which supports 1Gbps throughput in a 28/30MHz channel using 2048 QAM. The company also demonstrated a 2x2 MIMO solution using the IP-20C radio, simulating phase shift between the two pairs, providing 1 Gbps throughput in a 28MHz channel. Exhibit 5: Ceragon FibeAir IP-20C Radio

Source: Ceragon Networks

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DragonWave
DragonWave introduced its Avenue Link Lite, a full outdoor unit sub 6GHz radio with an integrated antenna, targeting the small cell market. The unit is 7.5 inches square and is available in the 2.3-2.6GHz, 3.4-3.8GHz and 5.15-5.875GHz frequency bands using TDD with 100Mbps throughput without the 2x2 MIMO option and 200Mbps with the 2x2 MIMO option. This is essentially an upgrade of the Horizon S series antenna and basic features. The dimensions are 19cm x 19cm x 5cm with a 0.5 ft antenna Exhibit 6: DragonWave Avenue Link Lite

Source: DragonWave

E-Band Communications
Keeping pace against other E-band radio suppliers, E-Band Communications launched its E-Link Mini 70/80GHz radio that can deliver 1Gbps using a 250MHz channel and 32QAM. The dimensions are 23.1 cm x 23.1cm x 13 cm with a weight of 3.5 kg. The unit includes a Layer 2 switch along with an option of a 38dbi integrated antenna or a 43dBi antenna. This system is targeted for small cell deployments with an incredible target link price of USD$5,000. Exhibit 7: E-Band Communications E-Link Mini

Source: E-band Communications

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Ericsson
Ericsson discussed the use of traditional microwave radio links that are LOS in a NLOS use case (using diffraction and reflection) to demonstrate 23-60GHz radios in NLOS have better performance than sub 6GHz NLOS systems, expanding the possibility of using traditional microwave frequency bands for small cell backhaul. Ericsson demonstrated this concept using a PT2010 radio at 28GHz in the Los Angeles market for MetroPCS. There is a video on their website showing a test system and a 28GHz microwave radio that is in deep NLOS (40 degrees) and still delivered 340Mbps of throughput. The company also launched the following IP-based products to support both macrocell and small cell backhaul: Mini Link PT3060 (60GHz) with 300Mbps throughput 250MHz channel and PoE supported [available end of 2013] Mini Link PT6020 (70/80GHz) with 1 Gbps throughput in 250MHz channel Mini Link SP 415/420 Packet Aggregation Nodes for L3 VPN based on IP/MPLS Mini Link LH Compact long haul solution Exhibit 8: Ericsson Mini Link PT3060

Source: Ericsson

Exalt Communications
At MWC2013, Exalt announced three new products within its ExtendAir and ExploreAir platforms. The ExtendAir eMIMO is a non line of sight (NLOS) wireless bridge using 2x2 MIMO and up to 250Mbps throughput supporting frequency bands from 4.9-5.8GHz and includes a Layer 2 switch and three Ethernet ports. The ExploreAIR LR is an all outdoor radio that supports an 80MHz channel with 512 QAM and includes a Layer 2 switch and two GbE ports. It boasts the industry's highest system gain in an all outdoor unit and 720Mbps full duplex throughput. The LR is available for the 6GHz, 7GHz and 11GHz licensed bands. The new NodeX combiner unit will be available in Q2 2013 and supports up to four ExploreAIR LR radios. Using two NodeX combiners, the solution can deliver 6Gbps using a single antenna with dual polarization.

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Huawei Technologies
Huawei announced its second generation E-band radio for LTE backhaul at MWC. We note that the first gen was only launched back in October 2012. This new version can support 1.25Gbps in a 250MHz channel or 2.5Gbps using a 500MHz channel. In addition, the radio supports QPSK and 64QAM, dynamic band selection (250/500MHz) and bandwidth flexibility (100Mbps to 2.5Gbps) as well as packet header compression for L2 and L3. The second gen product also supports IEEE 1588v2 as well as SyncE clock synchronization in addition to Layer 2 switching, E2E QoS and SLA support, L2 OAM and MPLS-TP support. Exhibit 9: Huawei Gen 2 E-Band Radio

Source: Huawei Technologies

Intracom Telecom
Intracom focused on its StreetNode product addressing small cell backhaul this year at MWC. This product focuses on the 26/28/32/42 GHz frequency bands and can be configured as a point to multipoint (PMP) or point to point (PTP) product supporting 540Mbps capacity with 1024 QAM. The StreetNode product can auto align 30 degrees in elevation and 220 degrees in azimuth. The unit dimensions for the StreetNode are 26.5cm x 14.5cm x 16.6cm with a weight of 2.3 kg. The StreetNode FO-HUB unit is 26.6cm x 23.7cm x 9.5cm and weighs 4.1 kg excluding the antenna. Exhibit 10: Intracom StreetNode

Source: Intracom Telecom

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LINKRA S.r.l
LINKRA showcased its new IDU GE which has 4 GbE ports and also supports 16E1s for its CIPHOP and WIHOP radio families. In addition, it also has introduced a new optical interface on its ODUs for its WIDHOP radio family. Exhibit 11: LINKRA Optical ODU Interface Cover

Source: LINKRA S.r.l

Exhibit 12: LINKRA IDUGE/IDUGE-T

Source: LINKRA S.r.l

LigoWave
LigoWave announced its LigoPTP Unity radio which supports 2x2 MIMO capacities up to 400Mbps in the 5.1-5.9GHz frequency band. The radio supports L2 and L3 QoS and has two GbE ports Exhibit 13: LigoWave Unity Radio

Source: Ligowave

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NEC Corporation
NEC launched a complete all outdoor product portfolio at MWC this year cover macrocells and small cells: iPASOLINK SX 60GHz for urban street-level connectivity iPASOLINK EX 70/80GHz for urban small cell traffic aggregation and distributed RAN fronthaul iPASOLINK AX 6-38GHz all-outdoor radio iPASOLINK GX IP router for street level branching and outdoor traffic aggregation We believe that the EX and SX products are in the sweet spot for small cell backhaul solutions. The AX radio supports up to 1024QAM while the SX product supports 256QAM and 320Mbps. The GX is a Layer 3 router with 4 GE ports and 2 SFP ports including support for line bonding. The Ex solution supports 256QAM and 1.6Gbps throughput with a Layer 2 switch included. Exhibit 14: NEC iPASOLINK EX

Source: NEC Corporation

Exhibit 15: NEC iPASOLINK SX

Source: NEC Corporation

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Nokia Siemens Networks

Having sold it microwave transport business to DragonWave last year, NSN showcased a weird looking mmwave radio for the 71-76GHz frequency band in its booth at MWC that will support 10Gbps supporting a steerable beam (+/- 40 degree beam) using an optical lens. The unit looked to have a small square antenna in the middle that was about 6-8 inches square. This unit was a prototype unit that was on display. Given the size and shape of the unit, and comparing it to other PTP radio vendors and assuming it is a traditional backhaul radio link, we believe that it has a long way to go before it is a production worthy unit. The company indicated 2016 as a timeframe for availability. Exhibit 16: NSN mmwave Radio

Source: Nokia Siemens Networks

SIAE Microelettronica
SIAE announced the ALFOplus80HD which is an E-band product with 2.5Gbps throughput (top left of picture) and a new ALFOplus ODU (7-42GHz) that is smaller and more power efficient (lower left of picture). SIAE also showcased a 2x2 MIMO configuration of its ALFOplus2 radio at the booth with supports XPIC and MIMO with a radio throughput of 2 Gbps using 2048QAM and supporting frequency bands from 7-42GHz. Each radio is a multi core offering 2 carriers that can be configured in XPIC. Using multilayer compression, XPIC and MIMO and two ODUs on each end, 4Gbps throughput can be achieved. Exhibit 17: SIAE 2x2 MIMO ALFOplus2 Radio

Source: EJL Wireless Research LLC (February 2013)

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Siklu
Siklu announced its EtherHaul-600T product was in advanced live field trials with several mobile operators including the Vodafone Group for a UK city trial. What is interesting is that the links are being deployed in a daisy chain at street level for backhauling live traffic of small cells. The industry is quite aware of deployment issues at street level including tree obstructions and pole sway so this should be a god indicator of how radios cope with these real life issues. Within the booth, Siklu showcased the EtherHaul-600T product as well as EtherHaul01200 product family for E-band. Exhibit 18: Siklu EtherHaul-600T Radio

Source: Siklu

Sub10 Systems
Sub10 Systems showcased the new Liberator-V100 unit at MWC this year. This new 60GHz radio provides 100Mbps full duplex throughput in a 100MHz channel. The unit dimensions are 18.2cm x 18.2cm x 6.8cm with a weight of 2.5 kg. In addition, this product uses Texas Instruments KeyStone-based TMS320C6678 multi core digital signal processor (DSP) and enables Sub10's "Snapback" technology which enhances SyncE and IEEE 1588 synchronization capabilities of the unit. Exhibit 19: Sub10 Liberator V100 Radio

Source: Sub10 Systems

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Taqua LLC
Taqua showcased its licensed 2.3/2.5GHz NLoS W-series product which uses 256QAM TDD in unpaired spectrum in 10MHz channels. Last year the company was involved in operator field trials in the US. Each Remote Backhaul Module (RBM) can support up to 6 small cell sites which then connects to the Hub Backhaul Module (HBM). Each HBM can support up to 72Mbps capacity from 1 to four RBMs in a shared configuration with 1 RBM capable of the maximum and four RBMs sharing the total 72Mbps capacity. Exhibit 20: Taqua Remote Backhaul Module (RBM) Unit

Source: Taqua

Tarana Wireless
Tarana Wireless unveiled its AbsoluteAir small cell backhaul solution at MWC focusing on an NLoS and LoS PMP architecture. The solution offers 75Mbps capacity to each small cell and supports TDD frequency bands from 2.5-3.7GHz. The antenna has a 100 degree aperture to dynamically align the link. The solution consists of the concentrator nodes (CNs), end nodes (ENs) and an element management system (EMS). The CN can support up to four ENs (75Mbps each) within a 10MHz channel, claiming spectral efficiency of 30 bits/s/Hz. Future generations of the solution will support higher data rates for the CNs and ENs. The range at full data rate is 2-4km NLoS. Exhibit 21: Tarana Wireless AbsoluteAir Solution

Source: Tarana Wireless

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