Singapore operator Singtel has deployed a 5G standalone (SA) trial network at its 5G Garage testing facility. The network uses 3.5GHz spectrum and Ericsson’s Massive MIMO technology to provide enterprises with early access to 5G to develop and trial 5G services.
Singtel unveiled its first 5G use case with its 24/7 unmanned pop-up retail store in September. This 5G SA trial network is designed to enable enterprises across industries to develop and test applications to accelerate automation and digitalisation.
Singtel also reports that cloud gaming company Ubitus is the first enterprise to use Singtel’s 5G SA network for a 5G cloud gaming trial. According to Singtel, the trial demonstrated a 5G cloud gaming service that consistently delivered 85 percent lower latency of between 8 to 11 milliseconds compared to cloud gaming on 4G. It was conducted on Singtel’s multi-access edge computing (MEC) platform which integrates 5G bandwidth capabilities with cloud computing performance. This allows rich graphics to be processed on dedicated servers and transferred directly to devices, in an attempt to cut lag times.
Enterprises can now test the operator’s 5G SA network connectivity by registering their interest at the Singtel website. Test-bed 5G applications and services can also be accessed at Singtel’s 5G Garage at no charge.
