Opinion:

The Politics of SA vs NSA

5G & 4G Speeds
Zahid Ghadialy,
Principal Analyst and Consultant
@3g4gUK
 Typical Operator Spectrum – 2G, 3G, 4G

2G

3G

4G

©3G4G
 5G: Multiple Layers for multiple needs

Coverage Layer
Sub-1GHz

Capacity Layer
1GHz – 7.125GHz

High Throughput Layers

24.25GHz – 52.6GHz

©3G4G
 Typical Operator Spectrum – 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G
FR1 – 410 MHz to 7.125 GHz FR2 – 24.25 GHz to 52.6 GHz

2G

3G

4G

5G

©3G4G
5G Deployment Options and Migration Strategy
EPC 5GC (NGCN)

SA
(Standalone)
eNB EPC gNB 5GC ng-eNB 5GC
Option 1: SA LTE connected to EPC Option 2: SA NR connected to 5GC Option 5: SA LTE connected to 5GC

[EN-DC] [NE-DC] [NGEN-DC]

eNB ng-eNB
NSA ng-eNB
(Non-Standalone)
EPC 5GC 5GC
[Dual Connectivity]

Option 3: NSA LTE assisted NR Non-Standalone 5G

Option 4: NSA NR assisted LTE Option 7: NSA LTE assisted NR
en-gNB gNB connected to 5GC
connected to EPC Networks, Release-15,gNB
all 5G connected to 5GC

networks today (SRIT)

Migration ↗ Option 2 ↗ Option 7 ↗ Option 3 ↗ Option 4
Option 1 Option 3 Option 3 Option 3
Strategy ↘ Option 3 ↘ Option 5 ↘ Option 2 ↘ Option 2

©3G4G
Option 3: NSA LTE assisted NR, connected to EPC
• en-gNB: node MME/S-GW MME/S-GW

providing NR user Based on: EPC

plane and control 3GPP TS 37.340 V15.4.0 (2018-12)
Figure 4.1.2-1: EN-DC Overall Architecture
plane protocol
terminations towards
the UE, and acting as

S1-U
Secondary Node in EN-
DC.
E-UTRAN
X2- U en-gNB
• In simple English, it’s a en-gNB
gNB that supports
legacy E-UTRAN
X2
interface eNB eNB

©3G4G
5G Dual Connectivity

While LTE-A supported up to 5 Component

Carriers (CC), each with a max of 20 MHz for
4G / LTE
Carrier Aggregation, LTE-A Pro supports 32 CCs
f1 f2 f3 f4
5G NR supports up to 16 CCs of max 400 MHz

LTE Carrier Aggregation

5G NSA
f1 f2 f3 f4 f5 f6

LTE Carrier Aggregation 5G NR Carrier Aggregation

Dual Connectivity (DC)

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Current NSA 5G Speeds
5G NSA
f1 f2 f3 f4 f5 f6

LTE Carrier Aggregation 5G NR Carrier Aggregation

Dual Connectivity (DC)

5G NSA Speeds = 4G Speeds + 5G Coverage/Capacity Layer Speeds + 5G mmWave Speeds

©3G4G
 UK: Only non-mmWave 5G right now
Non-mmWave 5G mmWave 5G

0 10 GHz 20 GHz 30 GHz 40 GHz 50 GHz 60 GHz 70 GHz 80 GHz 90 GHz 100 GHz

FR1: 450 MHz – 7.125 GHz FR2: 24.25 GHz – 52.6 GHz

©3G4G
 USA: Mix of mmWave & non-mmWave
Non-mmWave 5G mmWave 5G

0 10 GHz 20 GHz 30 GHz 40 GHz 50 GHz 60 GHz 70 GHz 80 GHz 90 GHz 100 GHz

FR1: 450 MHz – 7.125 GHz FR2: 24.25 GHz – 52.6 GHz

©3G4G
 Italy: Both non-mmWave & mmWave 5G
Non-mmWave 5G mmWave 5G

0 10 GHz 20 GHz 30 GHz 40 GHz 50 GHz 60 GHz 70 GHz 80 GHz 90 GHz 100 GHz

FR1: 450 MHz – 7.125 GHz FR2: 24.25 GHz – 52.6 GHz

©3G4G
Current NSA 5G Speeds
5G NSA
f1 f2 f3 f4 f5 f6

LTE Carrier Aggregation 5G NR Carrier Aggregation

Dual Connectivity (DC)

5G NSA Speeds = 4G Speeds + 5G Coverage/Capacity Layer Speeds + 5G mmWave Speeds

©3G4G
Current NSA 5G Speeds
5G NSA
f1 f2 f3 f4 f5 f6

LTE Carrier Aggregation 5G NR Carrier Aggregation

Dual Connectivity (DC)

5G NSA Speeds = 4G Speeds + 5G Coverage/Capacity Layer Speeds + 5G mmWave Speeds

©3G4G
5G Deployment Options and Migration Strategy
EPC 5GC (NGCN)

SA
(Standalone)
eNB EPC gNB 5GC ng-eNB 5GC
Option 1: SA LTE connected to EPC Option 2: SA NR connected to 5GC Option 5: SA LTE connected to 5GC

[EN-DC] [NE-DC] [NGEN-DC]

eNB ng-eNB
NSA ng-eNB Future – Standalone 5G
(Non-Standalone)
EPC 5GC Networks, after
5GC Release-16
[Dual Connectivity]
is finalized (RIT)
Option 3: NSA LTE assisted NR Option 4: NSA NR assisted LTE Option 7: NSA LTE assisted NR
gNB connected to EPC gNB connected to 5GC connected to 5GC
gNB

Migration ↗ Option 2 ↗ Option 7 ↗ Option 3 ↗ Option 4

Option 1 Option 3 Option 3 Option 3
Strategy ↘ Option 3 ↘ Option 5 ↘ Option 2 ↘ Option 2

©3G4G
SA 5G Speeds
5G SA
f5 f6

5G NR Carrier Aggregation

5G NSA Speeds = 5G Coverage/Capacity Layer Speeds + 5G mmWave Speeds

©3G4G
 Typical Operator Spectrum – 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G
FR1 – 410 MHz to 7.125 GHz FR2 – 24.25 GHz to 52.6 GHz

2G

3G

4G

5G

©3G4G
 Summary
• NSA 5G can provide good speeds (eMBB & FWA)
• SA 5G on the other hand will provide a ‘real 5G’ experience
• SA 5G needs a lot of spectrum to provide ‘real 5G’ experience, mainly
in FR1 or sub-7.125 GHz spectrum
• The best option is for an operator to have lots of new 5G spectrum,
in coverage, capacity & high-throughput layer
• But some operators will choose to re-rafarm 2G/3G spectrum,
leading to switch off for some 2G/3G networks
• Some operators may also choose to re-farm 4G spectrum, leading to
decrease in 4G speeds, which will work in favour of 5G as well
• This is just an opinion, every operator will have a different strategy and
approach.
©3G4G
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