The publisher just completed its 31st 5G benchmark study. For this endeavor they collaborated with Accuver Americas and Spirent Communications to conduct an independent benchmark study of a PC 1.5 (power class 29 dBm) versus a PC 2 (26 dBm) capable smartphone.
Highlights of the Report include the following:
Acknowledgements
This study was conducted in collaboration with Accuver Americas (XCAL5 and XCAP) and Spirent Communications (Umetrix Data). The publisher is responsible for the data collection and all analysis and commentary provided in this report.
Background
At 3GPP RAN#78 back in December 2017, a few companies proposed a higher-class power amplifier (29 dBm) for certain LTE and 5G mid-band frequencies to offset the coverage challenges associated with the higher frequency TDD spectrum. Five years later, this proposal is finally becoming a commercial reality. The publisher has already tested PC 2 versus PC 3 in an earlier report so it was only natural for us to take on this topic.
Methodology
Testing took place on the T-Mobile network (Band n41) in and around Laguna Beach, CA. The publisher used 2 largely identical Motorola edge (2022) smartphones with the only difference being one phone supported PC 1.5 and one phone supported PC 2. The publisher did downlink and uplink tests, stationary and mobile, as well as individual versus parallel tests. T-Mobile only provided logistical support, including the provisioned phones.
The Results
As expected, the PC 1.5-enabled smartphone had higher downlink throughput in RF challenged areas, and it provided better coverage, higher uplink MCS values, used more PUSCH resource blocks, and made better use of UL-MIMO and UL-256QAM than the PC 2-enabled smartphone. The publisher quantifies the differences in the report.
UL-256QAM and UL-MIMO Revisited
We remind readers how these two critical features can provide much higher throughput/spectral efficiency than smartphones with only UL-64QAM and a single uplink layer. PC 1.5 enhances how frequently these two features are used. The publisher also compares the Motorola edge (2022) smartphone's uplink performance with a best-in-class smartphone that only supported UL-256QAM.
UL-MU-MIMO
Not to confuse readers, but when testing single-user UL-MIMO we discovered uplink Mulit-user MIMO in which the network supported up to four smartphones, each capable of concurrently using all possible uplink RBs with certain caveats. The publisher didn't quantify its benefits, but plans to do so in an upcoming report.
Table of Contents
1.0 Executive Summary
2.0 Key Observations
3.0 Detailed Results and Analysis
4.0 Test Methodology
5.0 Final Thoughts
Index of Figures & Tables
Figure 1. Motorola edge (2022) and Galaxy S22 Uplink Throughput Time Series
Figure 2. Motorola edge (2022) and Galaxy S22 Average Uplink Throughput
Figure 3. Motorola edge (2022) and Galaxy S22 Uplink 256QAM Utilization
Figure 4. Motorola edge (2022) and Galaxy S22 Uplink MIMO Utilization
Figure 5. PC 1.5 5G Band n41 Coverage
Figure 6. PC 2 5G Band n41 Coverage
Figure 7. PUSCH Transmit Power Versus RSRP - Serial Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 8. PUSCH Resource Block Allocations Versus RSRP - Serial Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 9. Uplink MCS Allocations Versus RSRP - Serial Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 10. PUSCH Throughput Versus RSRP - Serial Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 11. PUSCH Transmit Power Versus RSRP - Serial Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 12. PUSCH Transmit Power Versus RSRP - Parallel Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 13. PUSCH Resource Block Allocations Power Versus RSRP - Serial Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 14. PUSCH Resource Block Allocations Versus RSRP - Parallel Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 15. PC 1.5-enabled Smartphone PUSCH Resource Block Allocations and Uplink MIMO Layers Time Series - Parallel Testing
Figure 16. PC 1.5-enabled Smartphone PUSCH Resource Block Allocations and RSRP Time Series - Parallel Testing
Figure 17. PC 1.5-enabled Smartphone PUSCH Resource Block Allocations and Uplink MIMO Layers Time Series - Serial Testing
Figure 18. PC 1.5-enabled Smartphone PUSCH Resource Block Allocations and RSRP Time Series - Serial Testing
Figure 19. Uplink MCS Allocations Power Versus RSRP - Serial Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 20. Uplink MCS Allocations Versus RSRP - Parallel Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 21. Uplink MIMO Versus RSRP - Serial Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 22. Uplink MIMO Versus RSRP - Parallel Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 23. PC 1.5 Uplink MIMO Usage
Figure 24. PC 2 Uplink MIMO Usage
Figure 25. Uplink 256QAM Versus RSRP - Serial Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 26. Uplink 256QAM Versus RSRP - Parallel Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 27. Uplink PUSCH Throughput Versus RSRP - Serial Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 28. Uplink PUSCH Throughput Versus RSRP - Parallel Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 29. Uplink PUSCH Throughput Versus PUSCH Transmit Power - Serial Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 30. Uplink PUSCH Throughput Versus PUSCH Transmit Power - Parallel Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 31. RSRP - Stationary Test
Figure 32. PUSCH Transmit Power - Stationary Test
Figure 33. Uplink MCS - Stationary Test
Figure 34. Uplink RB Allocations - Stationary Test
Figure 35. PUSCH Throughput - Stationary Test
Figure 36. Measured RSRP - Parallel Downlink Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 37. PUSCH Transmit Power - Parallel Downlink Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 38. PDSCH Time Series and Average Throughput - Parallel Downlink Testing of PC 1.5 and PC 2 Smartphones
Figure 39. Umetrix Data Platform
Figure 40. XCAL5 in Action
Companies Mentioned
- Motorola
- Accuver Americas
- Spirent Communications (Umetrix Data)
- T-Mobile
- Samsung
