Author: Xinguang Dog
TYPESETTING: LEAHMA
Exhibit: SOlab
In-depth good text, 1928 words = 5 minutes of reading
According to the latest news from the China Telecom Research Institute in early February, the localization pRRU of 5G extended small cell developed by China Telecom has been successfully developed, and the localization rate of chips and devices has reached 100%, achieving the first milestone in the localization of small cell products, and promoting the application and development of domestic chips for small cell equipment.
According to statistics from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, by the end of 2022, the total number of mobile communication base stations in the country was 10.83 million, of which 2.312 million were built and opened 5G base stations, accounting for 21.3% of the total number of mobile base stations and more than 60% of the total number of 5G base stations in the world. China's 5G network construction has achieved important results, and China's 5G technology has also been at the forefront of the world.
China Telecom Shanghai Research Institute Source: Baidu
Small cells do a big job
In the 5G era, due to the increase in transmission signal frequency, the increase in bandwidth, and the requirements for high transmission streams, the traditional source + passive antenna, that is, the DAS solution, can no longer meet the needs of 5G networks.
Small cell stations are small power, small weight and volume base station products, which are responsible for the transmission and processing of 3GPP signals in the radio access network. It is mainly used in deployment scenarios where macro base stations cannot meet coverage and capacity requirements.
The pRRU successfully developed by the China Telecom Research Institute is a miniaturized, low-power, low-power miniature 5G cellular base station, also known as a pico base station, which mainly solves the problem of indoor wireless coverage in specific areas, such as stadiums, airports, railway stations, office buildings, hotels, commercial buildings, and even in the cabin. Small base stations are mainly used for blinding of large base stations and auxiliary 5G network depth coverage.
5G base station real picture Source: Baidu
The advantages of localization will continue to be highlighted, and 5G small base stations will look at the domestic market
According to Omdia, a British research firm, shipments of 5G-oriented small cells will increase to 2.8 million units by 2024, 3.5 times that of 2020. The Asia-Pacific region accounts for more than half of this market, especially China, which is the largest market. Market research firm Dell'Oro predicts that the global small cell market will reach $25 billion in the next five years.
At present, the domestic small cell market is in its infancy, but it has become one of the fastest growing segments. With the end of 4G network construction and the large-scale commercial launch of 5G, it is expected that the demand for small cells will grow rapidly in the next few years. The upstream link of the 5G small cell industry chain involves many enterprises. The same is true for the downstream demand side. Domestic substitution is promising.
ZTE company source: Baidu
At present, there are mainly three types in the market, one is mainstream telecom equipment manufacturers, Huawei, ZTE, Datang and so on; The second is a professional small base station provider, with the advantages of early market entry, sufficient experience, and customer trust, such as Bangxun Technology, Comba Communications, Rihai Intelligence, etc.; Third, ODM manufacturers, such as Foxconn, such manufacturers lack relevant experience.
At present, more than 20 operators in China have launched products or services that support small cell functions. Among them, China Mobile took the lead in proposing to launch small base station products based on 5G networks, and has entered the testing stage. The other three major operators followed. Optimistic about the small and medium-sized cell market!
China Unicom base station source: Baidu
Huawei is still the king of domestic production
Among the most obvious advantages of domestic manufacturers, Huawei, as China's largest mobile operation equipment manufacturer, occupies a leading position in the world, and ZTE, as China's second largest mobile phone supplier, has also been committed to 5G network construction and technological innovation.
From the perspective of the industrial chain, small cells are a complete solution, which can not only solve the pain points of users, but also meet the needs of the industry through their own capabilities, so they have great value in the entire industry. However, at present, domestic enterprises are still in the catch-up stage, and there is a big gap with the international leading level. At present, a monopoly position has not been formed.
Huawei 5G equipment Source: Baidu
Localization can help Chinese companies maximize the advantages of high quality and low price. For example, in the disassembled Huawei 5G small base station, it was found that high-priced components such as important semiconductor FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array) for communication control were removed, which not only avoided the use of American manufacturers' products to achieve de-beautification, but also reduced the overall equipment costs.
According to the report, after adding the price of parts in small cells, the cost is only $160, which is even cheaper than a smartphone.
In addition, the core chip of Huawei's 5G small base station is Huawei's self-developed HiSilicon Kirin 970 series processor, which adopts a 10nm process to reduce power consumption and stronger performance. At that time, the technology was already leading the industry, and it was not difficult to see that Huawei's small base station business was in a period of rapid development and was expected to usher in explosive growth in the future.
HiSilicon Kirin 970 Source: Baidu
A message from experts
Although the localization rate of components is 100%, it should be soberly seen that most of the supporting facilities (such as EDA simulation software, semiconductor micro-processing equipment, etc.) on the software and hardware tool chain behind the product are still dependent on foreign countries, so domestic chip people still need to work hard.
Only love can spend a long time, I hope to continue to cheer with everyone, let us witness the big era of industry development together!