Verizon's Mike Haberman today detailed a number of improvements coming to the carrier's LTE network next year. In short, the carrier in red will be rolling out carrier aggregation, adding more coverage for VoLTE, and continuing to refarm its PCS spectrum for LTE.
Perhaps the most notable change is the implementation of carrier aggregation. According to a report by Fierce Wireless:
Mike Haberman, Verizon's vice president of network support, said Verizon is testing carrier aggregation right now on its network to ensure it can work properly, and devices that can support carrier aggregation will come into the market after that. Carrier aggregation, which is the most well-known and widely used technique of the LTE Advanced standard, bonds together disparate bands of spectrum to create wider channels and produce more capacity and faster speeds.
In addition, Verizon is working on refarming its PCS spectrum for LTE:
Haberman also confirmed that in addition to New York City, Verizon has started refarming PCS spectrum for LTE in Cleveland and around 10 other markets. Haberman said that Verizon will refarm its PCS spectrum for LTE as usage decreases on its 3G CDMA network. Additionally, he said that, as more customers use Voice over LTE, that will free up more PCS spectrum that is currently used for voice service.
On the coverage front, Fierce Wireless reports that Verizon's network will eventually support 4x4 MIMO:
Another LTE Advanced technology Verizon will introduce is higher orders of MIMO. Currently, Verizon's network supports 2x2 MIMO, meaning two transmitters and two receivers, which is a standard for LTE. Haberman said Verizon will be launching products that support 4x4 MIMO, which he said will improve devices' uplink performance and enhance coverage.
Finally, Haberman states that VoLTE deployment has been going well, and it is set to become Verizon's default voice offering as it continues to mature.
Source: Fierce Wireless
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