As every wireless operator knows, obstacles like trees, terrain features, and structures are an unavoidable part of doing business. Obstacles can severely reduce the viability of a wireless link by degrading throughput and reliability.
These challenges were certainly nothing new for Dwayne Zimmerman, founder and CEO of Crowsnest Broadband when he set up the link (pictured above) in rural Pennsylvania. “Our terrain is rural with lots of trees and mountains. When I first set up this link, I was hoping for anything really. I knew it would be tough due to the trees,” he said. “I was amazed when this link pulled 341 Mbps down and 77 Mbps up. Especially because this is 5 GHz and there are other 5 GHz radios installed at the tower.”
Before Tarana G1
Crowsnest had previously used a combination of Ubiquiti and Radwin but was looking for something with higher throughput and capacity as well as better spectrum reuse. His search led him to Tarana’s Gigabit 1 (G1) platform.
With Tarana G1 Next-Generation Fixed Wireless Access
Dwayne saw immediate and dramatic results with his first deployment. “We installed two G1 base nodes at our worst towers for 5 GHz noise to see what it could do. Both towers have more than 20 other 5 GHz APs and point-to-point links. The noise floor is insane,” he said. “Being able to push 300-400 Mbps in that kind of noise has been very impressive.”
Tarana’s G1 is the only broadband platform designed specifically to address the inherent challenges and requirements in fixed wireless access. We do this through pioneering innovation in next-generation wireless access, powered by a number of now well-proven industry firsts that allow operators to build networks that would have been impossible with previous legacy wireless systems.
As Dwyane’s deployment confirmed, G1’s radio innovations can cancel up to 40 dB of interference at both ends of the link. This grants G1 an unprecedented level of interference immunity; providing reliability and throughput even in severely congested RF environments.
This type of result is not a one-time occurrence. “We have another link we set up that is almost 5 miles with a heavily obstructed Fresnel zone. With that link, we saw 240 Mbps down and 87 Mbps up. This link would have been a no-go on our other 5 GHz equipment.”
A Nice Bump for the Bottom Line
While speed is important, new technology should always benefit the business as well as the subscriber. Thanks to G1, Crowsnest is able to offer two faster speed packages at correspondingly higher ARPU. G1’s improved link reliability, combined with faster speeds, increases customer satisfaction and ARPU while reducing churn.
By selecting G1, Crowsnest gained additional revenue, greater customer loyalty, and increased market competitiveness. Crowsnest’s experience is matched by many operators who have seen for themselves the power of next-generation fixed wireless access.
If you’d like to learn more, check out our other blogs or some of our favorite customer links. Or reach out to us at info@taranawireless.com. We’d love to hear from you.