SMART Communications Inc. (Smart), a PLDT wireless subsidiary, eyes to finish the upgrade of more than 4,200 3G and LTE sites across the country as part of its network modernization effort before the year ends.
Joachim Horn, chief technology and information advisor for PLDT and Smart, said in a press statement that they are a little advance in their target to meet their commitment to the National Telecommunications Commission which is to meet 90 percent municipality coverage next year for 3G and 4G mobile broadband.
"We are already at about 89 percent, so we will definitely meet that target early next year," Horn added.
For the past year, Smart has stepped up its mobile data roll-out significantly, particularly for LTE.
"This year, we more than doubled the number of sites which are capable of LTE," said Horn, citing as an example Metro Manila, where about 90 percent of sites already have LTE.
Smart has finished its LTE deployment in Metro Davao and Metro Cebu, in the island of Boracay, and in the province of Rizal. It is currently underway in Metro Manila and in key cities in other parts of the country.
Second wave of upgrades
Horn also cited "a second wave of upgrades" for Smart's LTE sites-four component carrier aggregation, or 4CC.
"We already tried this in Boracay, and we have just completed the upgrade of Marikina, where we have upgraded all base stations with 4-carrier aggregation," said Horn.
"The benefit for the customer is much higher capacity, and much higher speeds. So if you go to Marikina, you will easily be able to achieve more than 100 Mbps-on your phone," he added.
"Carrier Aggregation" (CA) allows for the combination two or more radio frequency bands in order to deliver bigger bandwidth and much faster data speeds to mobile users. 4CC aggregation features the combination of four separate spectrum blocks to deliver much greater capacity and speeds.
Horn said that users need to be using 4CC-capable devices and LTE SIMs to be able to fully enjoy 4CC speeds.
Earlier this year, Smart activated 4CC in Boracay, reaching average speeds of 280 Mbps in initial runs using Samsung's latest flagship smartphone the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+, 4CC carrier aggregation-capable smartphones available in the market.
After the initial deployment of 4CC technology in Metro Manila, Smart's internal tests showed consistent delivery of speeds breaching 300 Mbps in a single-user scenario, and over 200 Mbps in a multi-user, daytime set-up.
"This only goes to show that we have put in place a network that is capable of providing these high speeds," Horn said.
Smart is also partnering with device vendors in providing more affordable LTE-capable smartphones in the market, as well as actively urging its customers to upgrade to LTE SIMs so they can maximize the Smart's LTE network. It recently launched an LTE SIM check via SMS program, where customers can text SIMCHECK to 5832 to check if their SIMS are LTE-capable already or not.