Nokia Solutions and Networks has announced introduction of new Flexi Zone LTE microcell and picocell base stations with the same features and capacity as macro base stations. The new base stations run the same software as NSN’s macro base stations.

Packing up to 5W of output power in an install-anywhere 5 kg/5 liter box, NSN’s new all-in-one base stations will be available in early 2014. They are considerably smaller and lighter than existing microcell and picocell units, enabling them to be mounted closer to the center of traffic hot spots and robust enough to be deployed both outdoors and in public indoor locations. The base stations also feature a built-in GPS module and 1588v2 synchronization, avoiding the need for any extra units, further simplifying and speeding deployment.

According to NSN, operators will benefit from all the macrocell features, such as easy software upgrade to LTE-Advanced, full support of NSN’s NetAct Operations Support System (OSS), intelligent Self-Organizing Networks (iSON) automation as well as the Smart Scheduler and interference mitigation for superior subscriber performance in dense urban areas .

Initially expected to be used to provide hot spot capacity, the microcell and picocell base station software can when needed be remotely upgraded to create denser and larger hot zones as part of NSN’s Flexi Zone architecture.

The new microcell and picocell base stations also include NSN’s radio access security solution, which encrypts the traffic between the base stations and core network and automatically ensures that only operator authorized base stations can access the network. They are fitted with Bluetooth capabilities that enable remote access to the base stations from the ground.

To complement the base stations, NSN is enhancing its Services for HetNets with the use of a new multi-layer hot spot analysis and planning tool to help operators match their network deployments to business objectives.