Alcatel-Lucent shrinks cell tower
Controversial and power hungry cell masts, necessary for the deployment of mobile communications, could soon be replaced or augmented by an ingeniously compact cell phone antenna system developed by Alcatel-Lucent that is no bigger than a Rubik's cube.
The increased popularity of mobile wireless applications has presented a serious challenge as more base stations are required. Wireless data is expected to grow at least 26 times between 2010 and 2016, according to a survey conducted by CISCO. Conventional base stations are power-hungry as well as being unsightly.
However, the Alcatel solution would enable network providers to deploy smaller cell
sites much more quickly and at a much lower cost, estimated at up to 50% less than current operations.
The new technology is also fully configurable, so carriers can use the same set of equipment to offer 2G, 3G and 4G service from the same access point instead of having to change hardware too, as in the current technology.