Siemens Communications has signed a deal to supply Vodafone Germany with remote radio head systems for the new installation of W-CDMA base stations and the expansion of existing ones.
In a statement, the firm said radio heads were usually permanently integrated in base stations, but a new modular system from Siemens allowed the physical separation of the radio head from the server of a base station.
That meant that, for the first time, carriers could install the radio head remotely, giving them unprecedented flexibility in building networks, Siemens said.
This also enabled them to reduce power consumption in the final stage of the transmitter by up to 50%, and line and installation costs by between 30% and 70%.
Vodafone Germany decided to deploy remote radio heads to increase the capacity of its W-CDMA network quickly and cost effectively, Siemens said.