Vodafone Qatar has said its new 4.5G network will be rolled out across its network in the next few months, becoming one of the first carriers to introduce this technology in the GCC region.
This builds on Vodafone Qatar’s existing 4G+ services and will offer customers “even faster mobile speeds and provide the company with greater network bandwidth utilisation”, according to a press statement.
Providing details of developments in the area, Vodafone Qatar, in partnership with Huawei, yesterday announced that a milestone had been reached for the 4G network – achieving data speeds of 1Gbps in a test environment thanks to the introduction of 4.5G technology.
The necessary technology to achieve such high speeds was tested on live sites in Vodafone Qatar’s network, reaching speeds of up to 780Mbps. This speed allows the download of a typical HD movie of 3GB within around 30 seconds, it noted.
Ian Gray, chief executive officer at Vodafone Qatar, said: “The introduction of a 4.5G network will enable the implementation of smart city technologies such as the Internet of Things and cloud services in the country by providing the mobile broadband capability that underpins any smart city initiative.
“Vodafone is committed to continually investing in Qatar’s ICT sector, which will play a key role in realising Qatar National Vision 2030.”
Zong Yan, chief executive officer of Huawei Qatar, said: “We are delighted to build on our strategic partnership with Vodafone Qatar and contribute to accelerating advanced ICT services in Qatar.
“A 4.5G network enables Vodafone Qatar to offer its customers true broadband speeds that haven’t been experienced in the region before, and pave the way for the introduction of more advanced mobile services in the near future.”
In April this year, Vodafone Qatar’s network was named ‘Best in Test’ by the international leader in mobile performance testing, P3 Communications.