NEC plans an initial Japan launch in early fiscal 2026, followed by international versions later in the year
In sum – what to know:
Throughput and efficiency gains – NEC’s new massive MIMO RU delivers up to 54% downlink and 48% uplink throughput improvements while cutting power consumption by more than 40% in normal operation.
Smaller, lighter deployment – Reduced size and weight enable single-person installation, lowering site work and operational costs for operators.
vRAN flexibility boost – Extended fronthaul distance to 40 km supports more flexible base station placement and dynamic resource allocation.
Japanese company NEC has developed a new 5G sub-6GHz radio unit (RU) for base stations, targeting higher throughput, lower power consumption and easier deployment as mobile data traffic continues to rise.
The massive MIMO-based device is scheduled for commercial release in the first half of fiscal year 2026, following carrier trials and verification, according to the vendor.
The new RU succeeds NEC’s current integrated antenna model and builds on the company’s experience shipping more than 50,000 massive MIMO units globally since 2020. According to NEC, simulation results show average user throughput improvements of around 48% on the uplink and 54% on the downlink, with uplink gains expected to reach about 55% through a future software upgrade.
Energy efficiency is a central focus. Power consumption has been reduced by roughly 42% to 315W during normal operation and by 30% to 630W or less at peak load. The unit is also smaller and lighter, with volume cut by about 23% and weight reduced by roughly 33%, enabling single-person installation and lowering deployment labor, NEC added.
When paired with NEC’s virtualized RAN (vRAN), the RU extends fronthaul distance from 30 km to up to 40 km, improving flexibility in base station placement and helping operators optimize both capex and opex. NEC plans an initial Japan launch in early fiscal 2026, followed by international versions later in the year.
Ealier this month, Nikkei reported that NEC is set to end the development of 4G and 5G base stations, as competitive pressure from European and Chinese rivals continues to intensify.
Last month, Nikkei reported that Kyocera had also abandoned plans to continue developing 5G base stations, citing rising costs and fierce competition. Kyocera only started developing base station equipment two years ago, and was expecting to bring these 5G base stations to market in 2027.
Going forward, NEC plans to concentrate on equipment for defense-related and other specialized applications, as well as technologies aligned with next-generation standards. The Japanese firm will continue to provide maintenance and support services for its installed base of 4G and 5G systems, according to the report.
