Summary
- Airtel is rolling out 5G Standalone, starting with home Wi-Fi and moving to mobile users.
- It shifts the tech from a hybrid 4G/5G core (NSA) to a pure 5G core Standalone architecture.
- Airtel users will notice lower latency with Network Slicing and a more stable network experience.
Airtel appears to be all set to upgrade its 5G network architecture to finally take on the heavyweight Jio. The telco is moving away from its initial 5G strategy to a more advanced 5G Standalone technology, which could bring huge improvements to 5G speeds and the overall connectivity.
Airtel is rolling out 5G SA for mobile users
Tipster Abhishek Yadav took to X to reveal that Airtel's 5G Standalone network is rolling out for smartphone users and that it's already available on its services like Xtreme Fibre. The technology is different from Airtel's traditional 5G, which uses non-standalone 5G, and is viewed as inferior to Jio.
As for what it means, the new 5G SA is what 5G would've been in the first place. It is pure 5G that runs on a native 5G core without relying on 4G legacy tech. However, 5G non-standalone uses 5G radio frequencies for speed but piggybacks on the existing 4G/LTE infrastructure.
That's exactly why Airtel 5G rushed to the Indian market fast, as it likely did not need a major network revamp. Switching to a standalone network unlocks the true potential of 5G, because it doesn't need to coordinate with older 4G systems. The benefit? Significantly lower latency and Network Slicing to boost specific tasks on the network.
This move also aligns with Bharti Airtel's primary rival, Jio, which has already been using 5G SA since day one. Meanwhile, Vodafone Idea continues to roll out 5G SA gradually across the country. Airtel users should notice a more stable, responsive and faster internet experience once 5G SA is widely rolled out.
Source
X/ @yabhishekhd
