It was another eventful year at the MWC Las Vegas trade show, which once again brought together U.S. mobile carriers, wireless equipment manufacturers, and everyone else in between for a week of discussion about the state of the wireless industry. It’s always a great time seeing our longtime friends, partners, and customers as we collectively predict the most exciting technologies and initiatives that will drive the industry forward in 2025.
This year, news at MWC heavily focused on enterprise connectivity, particularly related to AI, 5G, and private networks. This is hardly surprising since 5G growth and spending have been slower than anticipated. The industry is working hard to simultaneously highlight the important business applications for wireless and to make investing in connectivity more streamlined and cost-effective. To that end, T-Mobile debuted their portable private networking solution that claims to be deployable in under 48 hours, cost-effective (when compared to other methods of private networking), and able to deliver low-latency, high-bandwidth connectivity for data-intensive applications from virtually anywhere. It’s widely believed that businesses understand the value of 5G and private networking but that the process needs to be simplified to increase adoption.
Additionally, the excitement about AI on the show floor was palpable. This will more than likely continue to be a major topic in the wireless industry for years to come because the data-intensive requirements of AI mean businesses will become even more reliant on excellent connectivity. According to a recent Verizon Business Survey, 40% of small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are already using AI – a number that is sure to increase as the technology matures. For this reason, and many others, SMBs are going to be an important growth market for enterprise cellular connectivity. Understanding this, ADRF debuted its own brand new solution primarily for this group at the show.
The SDRC Series is our first-ever Part 20 repeater to bring instant wireless connectivity to small and mid-sized buildings. The repeater makes it easier, faster, and more cost-effective than ever to provide cellular coverage by streamlining the lengthy and cumbersome process typically involved with establishing in-building wireless networks. Instead of being sold disparately like our industrial offerings, this is a turnkey solution with four 4G/LTE RF bands (e.g., 700MHz, 850MHz, PCS, AWS), coaxial cable, donor and server antenna that’s the ideal offering for offices, warehouses, apartments, or retail stores.
We also showcased our recently released fiber-to-the-edge low power remote (LPR) unit for our ADXV DAS, which is the industry’s best combination of flexibility, performance, and low total cost of ownership due to its end-to-end RF transport exclusively over fiber from the signal source to the antenna. These combined features eliminate the significant expense of installing and testing coaxial cables required by traditional DAS remote units. The LPR is perfect for filling in coverage gaps on large-scale deployments without concern of interference between multiple sectors.
Celebrating 25 Years of Making Connections
In between showing our new products to partners, customers, and industry analysts, we hosted a happy hour to celebrate our company making connections for a quarter century! We are so proud of the passion, ingenuity, and dedication of past and present members of the ADRF team who have successfully and consistently produced cutting-edge DAS and repeater solutions that have met our customers' needs across every wireless generation. To be in the industry for as long as we have, adaptability is key as the requirements for building indoor cellular networks across commercial and public safety are always a moving target.
As the sun sets on another edition of MWC Las Vegas, we are energized and excited for another 25 years. The rapid evolution of the wireless connectivity industry shows no signs of slowing, and you can trust us to stay at the forefront every step of the way.