Singtel, a leading telecom operator in Singapore, has achieved LTE speeds of 1.5 Gbps using five-carrier aggregation.
Singtel clams that this is the fastest in Asia and 50 percent faster than prevailing 1 Gbps speed. Singtel said it will gradually deploy the new speed across Singapore once it starts receiving more spectrum for the LTE network. Phone makers will be launching smartphones supporting 1.5 Gbps speeds in 2019.

“We are investing in innovative technologies to boost network speeds, enhance coverage and expand capacity to give our customers the best network experience,” said Yuen Kuan Moon, chief executive officer, Consumer Singapore and Group Chief Digital Officer at Singtel.

Singtel achieved the record network speed in Asia in partnership with Ericsson with carrier aggregation of five carriers, which boosts network bandwidth.

Singtel engineers combined two 1800 MHz frequencies, together with 2100 MHz, 2600 MHz and TDD 2500 MHz spectrum and technologies such as FDD & TDD, 256QAM and 4X4 MIMO to achieve the 1.5 Gbps speed.

Singtel said it will launch 5G network pilot in Singapore in the fourth quarter of 2018. Sweden-based Ericsson is the technology partner for Singtel’s 5G trials.