Qualcomm in partnership with Sierra Wireless and Ericsson, has demonstrated LTE carrier aggregation and Category 4 data rates. The demonstration, powered by the third-generation Qualcomm Gobi 4G LTE MDM9225™ chipset, Sierra Wireless’ AirCard mobile hotspot and Ericsson network infrastructure will be displayed at the Qualcomm and Ericsson booths at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

LTE carrier aggregation combines radio channels within and across bands to increase user data rates, reduce latency and enable LTE Category 4 downlink throughput speeds of up to 150Mbps for operators without 20MHz of continuous spectrum. 

The Qualcomm Gobi MDM9x25 chipset, manufactured using a 28nm process, also supports 3GPP Release 10 multicarrier HSPA+ and LTE Advanced. It features significant improvements in performance and power consumption from previous generations. The chipset occupies a smaller design footprint and features significant RF enhancements with an industry-leading combination of carrier aggregation, extensive 2G/3G/4G frequency band support, superior performance and a small PCB footprint with low power consumption.

The Qualcomm Gobi MDM9625™ and MDM9225™ chipsets began sampling to vendors last November and are anticipated to enable commercial device launches with LTE Advanced Carrier Aggregation later this year.