News
SmarTone is the next HK cellco to shut down 2G
SmarTone has announced that it will close its 2G GSM network on 14 October 2022 as demand decreases – the spectrum will be refarmed for 4G and 5G. Read more…
SmarTone
News
SmarTone arrives fashionably late to Hong Kong’s 5G party
SmarTone launched 5G in HK Thursday, almost two months after its rivals, but says the delay gave it time to get the customer experience right Read more…
News
HKBN to provide all-fibre 10GE backhaul for SmarTone 5G network
HKBN will provide a 10 GE backhaul network to connect thousands of SmarTone’s cell sites across Hong Kong for SmarTone’s 5G deployment. Read more…
News
SmarTone’s 5G plan subject to spectrum prices, heavy weather
SmarTone aims to launch 5G services next year, but still has several challenges to overcome – namely, expensive spectrum and heavy rain. Read more…
News
SmarTone to put humans on front line of enterprise security
SmarTone launches a managed cyber security service for enterprises that addresses the weakest link in their security perimeter: their own employees Read more…
Off the Wire
SmarTone launches smart property solution for hotels and homes
SmarTone has unveiled a new smart property solution for Hong Kong: SmartHotel & SmartHome. A dedicated team provides consultation on integrating existing property management systems with the solution, allowing users to utilize a variety of Read more…
News
SmarTone goes gigabit, adds live LAA to LTE network
Hong Kong cellco SmarTone has launched the city’s first live commercial license assisted access (LAA) network, which the operator says supports 1-Gbps download speeds. SmarTone says it has completed installation of LAA small cells in Read more…
Off the Wire
SmarTone launches NB-IoT property management solution for ICC
SmarTone and Kai Shing Management Services have jointly launched an NB-IoT smart property management solution at International Commerce Centre (ICC) – the tallest building in Hong Kong. The solution is based on SmarTone’s ‘SmarTeam’ mobile Read more…
Features
Q&A: QoE and collaboration are essential for 5G success
Hong Kong cellco SmarTone has spent much of this year getting ready for 5G, even though commercial rollouts are still a few years away. Interestingly, part of its 5G prep includes educating customers that there’s Read more…
News
SmarTone kicks off FDD massive MIMO trial with Ericsson
SmarTone and Ericsson have commenced a trial of FDD massive MIMO technology as the cellco continues its march towards 5G. The two companies are trialing FDD massive MIMO on the 1800 MHz band to put Read more…
Views
Hong Kong’s SmarTone launches 5S – no, that’s not a typo
ITEM: Forget 5G – SmarTone has launched 5S. Not a technology so much as a marketing device, 5S is meant to position SmarTone as a customer-focused cellco delivering all the key performance metrics that matter Read more…
Off the Wire
Ericsson and SmarTone top 800 Mbps in LAA demo
Ericsson and Hong Kong cellco SmarTone have announced a successful trial of Licensed Assisted Access (LAA) technology in a live over-the-air demonstration in Hong Kong. LAA allows the use of unlicensed spectrum in the 5-GHz Read more…
Off the Wire
SmarTone plans hackathon for smart properties apps
Hong Kong operator SmarTone says it will stage a 24-hour hackathon in October to encourage developers and startups to create “smart properties” apps. The SmarTone Hackathon will include participation by property conglomerate Sun Hung Kai Read more…
Views
HK cellcos disagree on 900/1800 but agree govt spectrum policy stinks
Last week Hong Kong’s major cellcos officially submitted their comments to the independent regulator CA on how it should go about reassigning 900/1800 spectrum once those licenses expire. The submissions from HKT, SmarTone and 3 Read more…
Off the Wire
SmarTone teams with Cisco Jasper for IoT connectivity services
Hong Kong cellco SmarTone and Cisco have announced the launch of IoT services in Hong Kong via SmarTone’s mobile network and Cisco Jasper’s “Control Center” managed connectivity platform. The partnership aims to makes it simple Read more…
Off the Wire
SmarTone and Ericsson plot five-year 5G evolution plan
Hong Kong cellco SmarTone said it is taking the next step on its roadmap to 5G via a five-year contract with Ericsson that will kick off with trials and pilot deployments of key pre-5G technologies slated for Read more…