NTT and NEC use 5G to stream 8K footage of a steam locomotive to its passengers

Japanese telco NTT DoCoMo and compatriot conglomerate NEC have teamed up to stream 8K footage of a steam locomotive back into the train.

“8K ultra-high-definition live video featuring a steam locomotive train was transmitted from a 5G base station installed along a railroad to a 5G mobile station located inside a running SL train and put on an 8K display,” NEC said on Friday about the test conducted in November.

The test also streamed 4K content to passenger handsets, however with the lack of 5G handsets available, the content hit the passenger mobiles via Wi-Fi from a 5G station on the train.

The NEC base stations used supported 4.5GHz and 28GHz bands, with the test itself forming part of a Japanese government project to examine the outdoor use of 5G systems that have average data speeds of 4Gbps to 8 Gbps.

Last week at CES 2019, Samsung displayed a 5G smartphone prototype in a glass case.

Also read: CES 2019: The biggest 5G news

The company also said it will be releasing a 5G handset in 2019, with Australian telco Telstra saying it has multiple agreements to offer 5G smartphones in the first half of 2019.

Telstra rival Optus announced on Monday that it had conducted a 5G data call across 60MHz of its 3.5GHz spectrum when setting up its 5G fixed wireless network.

The call was made between an Optus site and indoor Nokia customer premises equipment. The Singtel-owned telco said in November it will launch 5G fixed wireless services in Canberra and Brisbane this month, with other Australian capital cities to follow by March.

“Using the 5G 3.5 GHz 60 MHz band means that we will be able to deliver greater capacity compared to 4G, enabling the use of multiple devices as well ultra-high definition video streaming which is expected to be key for our customers when 5G begins rolling out this year,” Optus managing director networks Dennis Wong said.

“This is the first time in Australia that a data call has been made using 60 MHz channel bandwidth on an Optus live network and a 5G device.”

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