Connected technology firm Telit has unveiled what it claims is the world’s first globally available, fully capable PCI Express Mini Card.
Designed for enterprise routers and appliances, the product supports 23 different network bands. It also enables LTE speeds of up to 1.2GBps and 5-band fallback to 3G when connectivity is weak.
The company said the product will roll out to global markets by the third quarter of 2018. It has already conducted a string of successful mobile network deployments of LTE Advanced Category 8 technology.
Accessible tech
This is the first product that brings Cat 8 connectivity to the mPCle form factor, according to the firm.
The new LM960 is being offered alongside the Cat 11 LM940, which also provides OEMs with the ability to integrate the latest networking technologies into their products.
Both devices can be used interchangeably, explained Telit. This gives manufacturers the opportunity to “create new products based on designs already using the LM940”, it said.
New opportunities
Telit said that IT hardware companies can “create product families in different grades of performance, based either on the LM960 for high end, or the LM940 for mid-market”.
LTE offers great opportunities in the IoT space, and Telit is looking to support router and gateway OEMs in accessing them. Benefits include high download bandwidth and near-instant network response times.
With these new LTE cards, OEMs have a way to tap into high speeds and greater reliability to enable the use of high-definition streaming services and digital signage.
Next-gen connectivity
Manish Watwani, a VP at Telit, claimed his company is bringing next-generation connectivity to its clients, but in an easy-to-access form. “By bringing 5G-like performance to the market with the LM960, we are making it easier not only for customers looking to innovate in the 1Gbps applications enabled by the new LM960, but also for customers across all industries and application areas,” he said.
Telit has also teamed up with Qualcomm to develop its latest LTE modem. Gautam Sheoran, senior director of product management at Qualcomm Technologies, said the partnership is about supporting OEMs.
“We are pleased to work with Telit to deliver the power and flexibility that OEMs need to address a broad range of commercial and industrial applications in an increasingly connected world,” he said.
“The Qualcomm Snapdragon™ X20 modem will power a variety of products to function in a diverse set of operator deployments worldwide, while maximising their global reach and scalability.”
Internet of Business says
As competition intensifies in the IoT space, it is good to see how speed and accessibility are ramping up in ever smaller devices. And as this Internet of Business report explains (below), the need now is to drive down costs even further.
Read more: IoT success demands radical cost reductions and minimal devices, say Cambridge Consultants
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