Why MNOs should move from 5G NSA towards 5G SA?

5G NR
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  • My friend: Hi Ibrahim, I have a question for you.

    • Me: Please, go ahead.

  • My friend: I was wondering why MNOs should migrate from 5G NSA to 5G SA?

    • Me: This is a very good question :blush:. First, we need to know why MNOs used 5G NSA at the beginning of the 5G deployment and then we can understand why MNOs are moving now to 5G SA. The main idea behind using 5G NSA at the beginning of 5G deployment is the fast deployment of 5G and so any MNO can launch its 5G network quickly as 4G core will be used after some SW upgrade for it. Also, 4G network will cover the coverage gaps of the 5G network during the initial deployment of the 5G network.

  • My friend: So, all what you mentioned above is considered as advantages for 5G NSA and make me more confused about the motivation of MNOs to move towards 5G SA?

    • Me: Actually, 5G NSA is not considered as a real 5G as it only provides the eMBB service, but to enjoy the other two use cases which are URLLC and mMTC, then you need to move to 5G SA and so we can have more business opportunities such as time critical services thanks to URLLC, also E2E network slicing which will enable MNOs to provide different types of quality of service for different industries. Also, the end user experience will be enhanced as users can get the 5G bearer in 5G SA faster than 5G NSA and so enjoy higher throughput since the beginning of their data session. And, we have faster network responsiveness due to less handover interruption time and lower latency.

  • My friend: This is really fantastic.

    • Me: Actually, we didn’t finish yet, as 5G NSA is loading the 4G networks specially if split bearer is enabled in UL and DL and to offload the 4G networks which are suffering from high no. of users currently, the best solution is to introduce 5G SA which is having higher spectral efficiency. Also, 5G SA can enhance the 5G coverage in both DL and UL when 5G SA in low-band like 800MHz is introduced and when it is enabled in conjunction with 5G carriers in mid-band, this will enhance the capacity as well.

  • My friend: Thank you very much. You made it very clear.

    • Me: You are most welcome.

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LinkedIn: Ibrahim Sayed, PMP on LinkedIn: #5g #5gnr #5gtechnology | 16 comments

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thank you for the clear explanation

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