Written by Dan Jones, Site Editor, Light Reading Mobile. Posted with permission.

Small cells look set to take a pivotal role in 3G and 4G networks this year and beyond as the technology finally comes of age. The concept of a tiny base station to improve in-building call coverage first took root in the home but has now taken on a wider focus. Indoor and outdoor public access small cells on 3G and LTE 4G technology arriving this year and beyond promise better call coverage and wireless data in busy public areas.

Analysts at Infonetics have predicted that public access small cells will hit 3 million units in 2016, driven by the carrier need to support massive amounts of wireless data generated by users in big cities.

Infonetics surveyed people “at 22 independent wireless, incumbent, competitive, and cable operators from EMEA, North America, and Asia Pacific” about current and future plans for small cell and cellular backhaul and found that the industry is expecting small cells to take on much more of the network traffic load in the coming years . “By 2016, those surveyed expect in-building and outdoor small cells (microcells, picocells, and public access femtocells) to handle around 1/4 of mobile traffic,” the analysts write.

The benefits of this for carriers – and users – should be faster and more consistent service at the edge of the network with more ability to handle unpredictable heavy traffic flows in heavy traffic areas. The cost of ownership and the best way to backhaul multiple tiny radios are still issues for carriers.

The experts at NewCore Wireless have been actively involved at the state and national level, speaking on the topics of small cells, Wi-Fi offloading and DAS. Contact us to learn more!