An Ignoble Experiment

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Google's (NASDAQ:GOOG) Motorola Mobile division scored a win as its Moto X smartphone impressively outperformed devices from Samsung, LG and HTC in tests of network connectivity undertaken by Signals Research Group.

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The Moto X got "top honors, by a country mile" in the research firm's report, which noted the handset garnered more than 35 percent higher average throughput than the other devices across all correlated and uncorrelated test scenarios. In addition, the Moto X could sustain a data call at signal levels as much as 9 dB lower than levels for the other devices tested.

Those other devices include the Samsung Galaxy S4, Samsung Galaxy Note II, HTC One and LG G2, which were tested over the 700 MHz Band 17 used by AT&T (NYSE:T). The Moto X was tested on 700 MHz Band 13, used by Verizon Wireless (NYSE:VZ).

Michael Thelander, Signals Research's founder and CEO, said use of different bands did not cause differences in the devices' performance, given that Band 13 and Band 17 are fairly close together on the spectrum chart. "I'm confident that if we had tested a Moto X phone that supported Band 17 in Band 17 that the results would be largely the same," told FierceWirelessTech.

At a Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) modem event in November, Thelander said that when it comes to accepting devices for use on their networks, mobile carriers are more focused on compliance with specifications than performance. His firm's new over-the-air benchmark study reinforces the notion that regardless of how robust of a network an operator builds, the customer experience will be dramatically impacted by the quality of devices employed on it.

And crummy device connectivity impacts more than just the individual user carrying the poorly performing device. "If you've got a device out there that's making inefficient use of resources, it's impacting everybody else on the network," Thelander said.

All of the tested devices, which each used a Qualcomm chipset, were commercially procured and none of the handset vendors or operators had prior knowledge of the test campaign. Signals Research also collected preliminary data from Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone 5s but did not report results due to higher layer issues that were encountered, Thelander said.

Regarding the five devices for which results were reported, each was tested for about 14.4 hours in an anechoic chamber using a variety of angles and some 35 power levels. There were about 860 tests for each phone with each test lasting 60 seconds. The tests were conducted with equipment and other support from Spirent Communications and ETS-Lindgren.

The disparity in the devices' performance was partly a reflection of how well the devices leveraged MIMO capabilities. "Even when conditions warrant the use of MIMO, its effectiveness is highly dependent on the mobile device," Thelander said.

Signals Research separately tested two of the smartphones using only Transmission Mode 2 (TM2)--that is, base station transmit diversity mode--rather than the TM3 open-loop MIMO mode.

Results proved the incremental performance benefits of MIMO under ideal conditions. But they also showed that MIMO can result in a slightly negative performance when faced with poorer channel conditions or lower signal strength, implying that the network and device "probably should have reverted to transmit diversity instead," Thelander said. "Sometimes MIMO gets used more than it should," he added.

"I'm a huge fan of MIMO and I know that it works, but it isn't a panacea," Thelander said.

Signals Research also tested the impact of a plastic protective cover on a higher-end smartphone. Initial results indicate that there could be a modest degradation, perhaps 10-15 percent, in performance at higher signal levels when MIMO is being used.

For more:
- see this Signals Research webpage

Read more about: MIMO, testing, Moto X, Google
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2. Report: NSN's fourth-quarter sales fell 19%

By Tammy Parker

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3. Qualcomm leads Fon funding round, will integrate Fon into Atheros chipsets

Nokia (NYSE:NOK) will reportedly disclose a continuing decline in infrastructure sales just as it prepares to leave its handset history behind and become primarily a network equipment company.

The company's infrastructure business, Nokia Solutions and Networks (NSN), is expected to report a 19 percent decline in fourth-quarter 2013 sales to 3.2 billion euros ($4.3 billion) when it reports quarterly and year-end 2014 results on Thursday, according to Reuters. The lower numbers are primarily due to the wrapping up of major wireless broadband projects in Japan and South Korea. Asia, including China, accounted for some 41 percent of NSN's sales in the third quarter.

Nonetheless, NSN is expected to report a strong adjusted operating margin for the fourth quarter. The company earlier forecast the margin would come in at around 12 percent, plus or minus 4 percentage points, compared with 8 percent in the third quarter, Reuters said.

NSN has helped rescue the struggling parent company in recent quarters. During the third quarter of 2013, NSN delivered its eighth consecutive quarter of positive free cash flow and the second-highest growth margin in its history.

However, NSN's year-over-year net sales plummeted 24 percent to nearly $3.57 billion during the third quarter, with some of the decline attributed to business divestments and exits from certain contracts and countries. Even excluding those issues, net sales declined year-over-year by some 20 percent.

Part of NSN's turnaround was based upon an intentional focus on profits rather than revenues, but the company's continued sales decline means management will increasingly need to consider sacrificing profitability in exchange for revenues.

Nokia will retain its NSN business, which will make up the bulk of the parent company after Microsoft pays $7.2 billion for Nokia's handset business and a license to its patents and mapping software. Fourth-quarter results from Nokia's handset business will be counted as discontinued operations, given that the Microsoft deal is expected to close soon.

Reuters said Nokia is expected to report lower handset shipments for the fourth quarter. However, its quarterly smartphone shipments may have seen a 53 percent year-over-year increase, a positive sign given that the Nokia brand has struggled to compete in the smartphone market despite retaining strength in lower-end feature phones.

Once the handset division is sold, Nokia will select a new CEO. Rajeev Suri, NSN's CEO, may be a leading contender for the role given his deft turnaround of NSN. Another Nokia insider reportedly being considered is Timo Ihamuotila, Nokia's CFO and interim president.

Rumors still abound regarding a potential tie-up between Nokia and rival infrastructure provider Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE:ALU), which some analysts contend would make Nokia a stronger competitor against perennial market powerhouse Ericsson (NASDAQ:ERIC) as well as Chinese competitors Huawei and ZTE.

For more:
- see this Reuters article

Read more about: Alcatel-Lucent, Rajeev Suri
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By Tammy Parker

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4. SK Telecom will demo three-band LTE-A carrier aggregation at MWC 2014

Marking its importance as a strategic investor and development partner for crowdsourced Wi-Fi service provider Fon, Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM) led the Madrid-based firm's latest fundraising round, which attracted $14 million total.

In addition, Qualcomm's Atheros subsidiary is working closely with the Wi-Fi sharing network on a new router "that combines social Wi-Fi with social music," Fon said. The router, based upon a Qualcomm Atheros chipset, will hit the market during this year's first half.

Qualcomm Atheros is also integrating Fon as a feature, available via SDK for its chipsets, which will make it easier for Wi-Fi router manufacturers using Qualcomm Atheros' chipsets to integrate Fon. This could play a crucial role in expanding the market for Fon's services.

"We are excited about our new relationship with Qualcomm, which is an amazing company and a leader in mobile data communication. By integrating Fon into Qualcomm Atheros' chipsets, more devices and systems will be automatically equipped to be part of Fon's global Wi-Fi network," said Martin Varsavsky, Fon's CEO.

"Fon's unique approach to crowd-sourcing Wi-Fi is going to play an increasingly instrumental role in the future of mobile data," said Miles Kirby, senior director for Qualcomm Ventures, Qualcomm's venture capital arm. "Fon fits perfectly into our vision to solving the increasing demand for data."

Other investors participating in Fon's latest funding round included existing investors Index Ventures, Google, Coral, Atomico and Deutsche Telekom.

Fon will use the funds to build out its nascent U.S. presence as well as expand its reach into new markets worldwide. It will also fund new product development, including a new Fon router and its newly developed invitation-only "WiFi for Business" service.

Fon, which encourages users to share their Wi-Fi router signal with others in exchange for free access to other Fon hotspots around the world, entered the U.S. market last fall. Its $59 Fonera router splits a gateway owner's Wi-Fi signal in two, with a private signal for the owner and a shared signal for other Fon members as well as the owner's guests. The two signals have different SSIDs.

Fon's footprint has expanded by more than half in the past year and now stands at over 12 million Wi-Fi hotspots. The company said Fon hotspots are present in more than 10 percent of households in countries such as the United Kingdom, France and Belgium. Fon expects to reach 35 million Wi-Fi hotspots by 2016.

For more:
- see this Fon release
- see this TechCrunch article
- see this PCWorld article

Read more about: Wi-Fi, artin Varsavsky
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By Tammy Parker

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5. Inmarsat making headway on GX Ka-band inflight broadband service

SK Telecom intends to showcase its LTE Advanced three-band carrier aggregation technology next month during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, delivering download speeds of 450 Mbps by aggregating three 20 MHz bands.

Further, the South Korean carrier just unveiled LTE-A technology that enables the aggregation of three component carriers using two different bandwidth sizes to offer speeds of up to 300 Mbps. SK Telecom, South Korea's largest mobile operator, told Mobile World Live the three different frequency bands it used were 20 MHz at 1.8 GHz, 10 MHz at 800 MHz and 10 MHz at 2.6 GHz.

"With the successful development of this technology, customers will be able to experience the fastest LTE-Advanced speeds once the related chipset and devices are developed," the carrier said. It added that the global standardization process for LTE-A three band carrier aggregation is ongoing, but industry experts have forecast the technology will be commercialized by year's end.

Mobile World Live, citing the Yonhap news agency, said LG Uplus, South Korea's No. 3 mobile operator, also intends to launch three-band carrier aggregation this year, combining 40 MHz in the 2.6 GHz band, 20 MHz at 800 MHz and 20 MHz at 2.1 GHz.

In June 2013, SK Telecom rolled out the world's first LTE-A network offering carrier aggregation of two 10 MHz bands with a commercial smartphone for use with the service. The LTE-A service enabled the operator to support downlink data speeds up to 150 Mbps, twice the 75 Mbps it was delivering over its LTE network without aggregation

Operators in South Korea and other markets have also rolled out dual-carrier aggregation to deliver faster speeds and added bandwidth. Further, vendors and operators have engaged in numerous demos over recent months to highlight the higher data speeds that can be achieved by aggregating two 20 MHz bands.

For more:
- see this SK Telecom release
- see this Mobile World Live article

Read more about: SK Telecom, LTE Advanced
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By Tammy Parker

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