CommScope has upgraded its microwave antenna portfolio with the introduction of two new long-haul antenna product lines – USX and HX – into its Sentinel and ValuLine ranges. These are designed to ultimately replace the company’s existing long-haul antennas, providing next generation performance for cellular, broadcast, telecom and private networks.
CommScope has demonstrated augmented reality (AR) capabilities with its imVision automated infrastructure management solution which will soon allow customers to ‘see into their local area networks.
Over the last year, you may have heard proponents espouse the benefits of OM4+ multimode fibre. For instance, they claim it is better for single-wavelength applications, and it’s comparable to OM5 for multiwavelength application support. While OM4+ may have some useful attributes, which vary from company to company, that variation is a clue to the fact that in all cases it is proprietary, meaning it is not standardised. Essentially, the public is being asked to take OM4+ proponents at their word. As New York Yankees legend Yogi Berra once said, ‘It’s like déjà vu all over again’.
OFS and CommScope have entered into a new eight-year partnership to help ensure the availability of optical fibre supply to CommScope for use in its customers’ networks. The specific terms of the agreement have not been publicly disclosed, but it represents an investment from both companies in order to address the increased demand for greater bandwidth.
Modern hybrid fibre coaxial (HFC) cable access networks are very different to their original home television delivery-focussed incarnation, observes Alberto Campos, distinguished technologist at CableLabs, in Louisville, Colorado. ‘Broadcast TV demand has been decreasing,’ he told Fibre Systems. ‘Online or on-demand viewing and broadband internet have been increasing and are the biggest residential items.’ Our appetite for data seems insatiable, with internet connection speeds accelerating at approximately 45 per cent annually, he says.
To meet the challenges associated with escalating data rates and the ongoing need for higher bandwidth in the data centre, CommScope has introduced SYSTIMAX cabling and connectivity products based on its LazrSPEED 550 WideBand multimode fibre (WBMMF).
CommScope demonstrated the capabilities of the new fibre alongside Finisar’s new short-wavelength division multiplexing (SWDM) transceivers at OFC 2015. The emerging WBMMF standard enables up to four times more bandwidth at longer distances than standard multimode fibre.
As data demand ramps ever higher, researchers are looking to innovative amplifier designs to help transport a broader light spectrum through optical fibres, finds Andy Extance
Duncan Ellis shares his views about the increased focus on automation from network operators, and how the physical layer has so far stubbornly resisted the move
Switching off copper networks where fibre has been deployed is the end game, so why are so few operators doing it, wonders Pauline Rigby
With demand for fibre to the premises increasing, Keely Portway looks at the role training plays in ensuring installation skills remain available to meet this growing demand