Explore the future of 5G IoT Connectivity – RedCap/eRedCap for IoT Webinar

Discover how 5G RedCap and eRedCap are redefining efficient IoT connectivity in our on-demand webinar, developed in collaboration with the GSA as part of our strategic partnership. This discussion builds on insights from the GSMA IoT Community RedCap/eRedCap for IoT Whitepaper and the GSA Hot Topic 5G RedCap Report, offering a clear understanding of how these technologies will shape the next wave of connected innovation.

Hear from industry experts

Join our expert panel as they share their perspectives on 5G RedCap and eRedCap deployment and adoption across the global IoT ecosystem:

• Julien Grivolas, EU Director, Wireless Network Industry Development, Huawei
• Steve Hardin, Director of Product Development, AT&T Mobility
• Patrik Cerwall, Head of CSP Strategic Marketing, Ericsson
• Moderated by Jim Morrish, Founding Partner, Transforma Insights

Gain unique insights from leading operators, manufacturers, and innovators as they examine where 5G RedCao and eRedCap fit within the evolving cellular IoT landscape.

Key discussion highlights

Watch the webinar on-demand and gain a deeper understanding of how RedCap and eRedCap are shaping the next generation of IoT innovation.

Download the GSMA IoT Community Whitepaper here and the GSA 5G RedCap hot topic report here

FAQs

1. What is 5G RedCap and how does it differ from standard 5G New Radio? Introduced by 3GPP Release 17, 5G RedCap (Reduced Capability) was designed primarily to minimise the hardware and software complexity of standard 5G NR to drive down cost and better compete with legacy 4G IoT device ecosystem. However it is important to keep in mind that, while RedCap devices may have “reduced capabilities” versus legacy 5G NR, they retain the ability to offer speeds of up to 226 Mbps in DL / 120 Mbps in UL e.g. slightly higher than LTE Cat 4, support SMS messages, benefit from 5G SA features (such as slicing and VoNR) while supporting smaller form factors and longer battery lives than legacy 5G NR devices.
2. What is eRedCap and what advantages does it bring over RedCap? Introduced by 3GPP Release 18, 5G eRedCap (enhanced RedCap) further simplifies 5G RedCap allowing to further reducing costs and energy usage. One key reason leading to complexity reduction relates to the decision to limit the maximum throughput achieved by 5G eRedCap to 10 Mbps in both DL and UL while keeping the same device baseband bandwidth of 20MHz. In addition, it can be noted that, unlike for 5G RedCap, the focus is only FR1 spectrum for 5G eRedCap.Apart from these differences, eRedCap and RedCap are basically leveraging the same simplification mechanisms (reduced number of antennas, HD-FDD option, lower QAM configuration, power saving features, etc.). Regarding power consumption, eRedCap allows the configuration of a much higher eDRX time for a device in the RRC inactive state than for RedCap (up to approximately 3 hours versus 10.24 seconds). In summary, 5G eRedCap provides higher speeds than LTE-M and NB-IoT and similar speeds to LTE Cat 1. This makes it as the ideal complementary technology of 5G RedCap to fill the gap between 5G mMTC and 5G NR for IoT.
3. What types of IoT devices benefits most from 5G RedCap? RedCap is intended to address IoT applications with mid-tier speed requirements similar to those addressed by LTE Cat 4 today, such as wearables, surveillance cameras, alarm panels, digital signage, mid-end industrial gateways and routers, smart grid, network bridges and vehicle telematics, among the others. 5G RedCap is more than a LTE Cat 4 replacement as it brings multiple key advantages: longer lifecycle, higher data throughput, lower latency, lower power consumption, support of addition UE power classes.
4. When is global adoption of RedCap and eRedCap expected? The pace of technology adoption will largely depend on individual MNOs’ strategies, and some regions will adopt RedCap and/or eRedCap faster than others. Regarding RedCap, among the dozen countries with commercial services available today, big markets like China and the US already deployed the technology in large scales. Commercial availability of eRedCap is expected in 1-2 years from now as the R18 specification was frozen more recently (during 2024 versus 2022 for R17).
5. How does RedCap support IoT migration from LTE-M and NB-IoT? 5G RedCap and eRedCap are not replacement technologies for the lower bandwidth 5G mMTC technologies LTE-M and NB-IoT. Instead, one goal of these new 5G SA flavours is to bring the bulk of the legacy business, including use cases currently serviced with 2G, 3G and 4G (Cat 4 and Cat 1/1bis) on to the 5G SA network.
6. What role do chipset vendors play in RedCap ecosystem growth? The availability of chipsets is a key pre-requisite for the device ecosystem development for any cellular technology. Today, several leading chipset suppliers are commercializing a range of 5G RedCap chipsets. Thanks to that, several dozens of module models have already been commercially launched. These products themselves can be integrated by IoT device makers into a variety of device form factors addressing the needs of various vertical markets. At the same time, if there is no 5G eRedCap chipset commercially available yet, several leading chipset vendors have announced plans to offer some in the near future.
7. What are the certification requirements for 5G RedCap and eRedCap devices? The certification process for 5G RedCap and eRedCap technologies is similar to what is happening with other 3GPP IoT technologies. For reference, focusing on the certification regarding the compliance with the 3GPP specifications, the Global Certification Forum (GCF) certified the first 5G RedCap modules in Q3 2024. Regional certification organizations such as PTCRB for North America also already started to certify 5G RedCap products. It is also happening at national level with certification being passed at FCC (US), CCC (China), EC/RED, etc. On top of that, mobile operators are also often having their own set of certifications for IoT devices to comply with to ensure optimum interoperability and service reliability.
8. What use cases are best suited for eRedCap in IoT? The core of 5G eRedCap use cases will be similar to those currently serviced by LTE Cat 1 / Cat 1bis technologies. This includes use cases such as fleet management, alarm panels, wearables, smart city, etc. Again, together with 5G RedCap, eRedCap will allow to fill the gap between 5G mMTC (NB-IoT / LTE-M) and 5G NR IoT use cases.
9. How does RedCap reduces IoT device costs and power consumption? Compared to standard 5G NR, 5G RedCap incorporates a range of mandatory and optional technical simplifications allowing the reduction of both device costs and power consumption. A high-level overview of all technical details are available in the whitepaper (pages 11 to 15) but here are a couple of examples: – It is mandatory for all 5G RedCap devices to use a maximum bandwidth of 20MHz instead of the 100MHz bandwidth of standard 5G NR in FR1. – An example of optional simplification could be the number of downlink MIMO layers in FR1 as this can vary from 1 to 2 layers. Obviously, when using a 1T1R RedCap device, end users can expect half DL throughput performance compared to using an equivalent 1T2R RedCap device. With less elements 5G RedCap devices naturally consume less power but there are also specific power saving features (eDRX, relaxed monitoring and wake-up signal) on top that contribute to significantly expand battery life compared to standard 5G NR.
10. How does RedCap and eRedCap align with 5G SA deployments? Both 5G RedCap and 5G eRedCap technologies are based on 5G SA architecture. It means that the availability of 5G SA is a mandatory pre-requisite if operators are willing to benefit from these latest 5G IoT technologies.