Samsung pushes out single console all-in-one RAN kit for cramped European markets

Space may be the final frontier, but for telecoms operators it is a pressing concern, particularly those based in countries where land comes at a premium, most notably the UK. Enter Samsung, which has introduced its first all-in-one antenna and radio unit for the European market. Introduced at the company's Samsung Networks: …

[Henry Wertz 1]

They can blend in pretty well!

They can blend in pretty well!

Verizon Wireless in my area (Iowa, United States).. Coralville, IA has no microcells, there's a couple "tower" sites and that's it; Iowa City, IA (these two towns are directly adjacent and sprawled together..), microcells about every 2 blocks. So you're going along this bit of highway (Coralville strip), you're getting like 10mbps with occasional dips to like 1-3mbps, you keep going and you're in Iowa City, 90mbps+ all the time with the "worst case" dips being like 30mbps.

Those things really blend in!

One, those barrel-shaped grey power transformers up on the power pole, there's a third "transformer" that's plastic and has fiber optics running up instead of ground wires (we have above ground power and cable, but buried phone lines, here.).

The other I've been able to find (only because I have a signal strength app and can see it pegging out so I know it's there...), the side of this building has like a building-sized air conditioner and the utility boxes and meters for phone company, power company, etc., apparently one of the "etc." is a cell site made to look like a generic utility box. I know I was looking right at it and couldn't even tell which it was (I suppose the required markings ... thing saying it's owned by Verizon WIreless, the "no digging" for the fiber, etc., must have been on the back so they face the building? Otherwise you'd think you'd at least see the box with cell phone company markings on it.)

Third one there's a grass area like between two houses with a maybe 2 foot tall green pipe sticking up, it looks all faded though like the smaller size phone company boxes. Not sure if the pipe's it, or (given how the other two were hidden) there's just an extra "utility meter" or something tucked in next to the houses, I didn't care to walk into someone's yard just to take a look. But from the sidewalk, you could look at the equipment and I would have guessed there was no cell site there.

I was very surprised, generallly in areas with this site densification the "big 4, now 3..) (Verizon Wireless, AT&T, T-Mobiile, and former Sprint, who T-Mo just bought) did just end up (occasionally) putting up new masts but otherwise using what clearly look like cell site antennas stuck to street poles, power poles, toops of buildings and whatever else.