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The mobile networks of the providers in Germany can have two speeds: either very slow or fast.

One technology is called Narrowband IoT, i.e. narrowband for the Internet of Things.

The other is about the fourth and fifth generation of mobile communications 4G and 5G.

The narrowband network can be used to network sensors that report whether a parking space is free or a garbage can is full.

4G and 5G networks are able to transmit large amounts of data, for example to stream videos while on the move.

With a new network, mobile operators now want to fill the gap in between.

At Telekom, the so-called LTE-M network (Long Term Evolution for Machines) has been available nationwide for several months.

Vodafone activated its network shortly after Christmas - and Telefónica plans to follow suit next year.

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The advantage of the new technology: Right from the start, it has an area coverage of 95 percent and more in Germany and extends deep into the basement, underground garages and factory buildings.

This could mean a small revolution for the use of networked devices.

"Consumers will no longer have to buy a washing machine in the future, but can rent it cheaply and pay for each wash," says Telekom in one scenario.

The machine sends the data for this via the new network.

At Telekom, LTE-M is even seen as a “future-proof successor” to 2G and 3G.

All network operators in Germany have now decided to switch off the 3G networks shortly.

So far, they have not wanted to do without 2G because, on the one hand, many machines are networked with each other and, on the other hand, the area coverage for mobile phone calls is large.

But LTE-M can do all of this.

Senior emergency call systems as the first application

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For Vodafone, it's initially about networking things with people so that machines can also receive voice commands, for example.

"We build the mouthpiece for people and machines in the Internet of Things," says Vodafone Germany boss Hannes Ametsreiter WELT.

"In the future, people and machines will not only be able to exchange data, they will also be able to make calls with one another."

In the past few weeks, Vodafone technicians have carried out their modernization work on more than 18,000 mobile radio stations.

But in the end, it's all about a software update, because LTE-M uses the existing 4G network.

Cell phone operators have already networked a large number of things with one another in the past.

It is true that the narrowband IoT network used for this is available practically all over Germany.

But the data speeds in it are only very low.

Information such as on and off states or temperatures is transmitted.

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The speeds of less than 200 kilobits per second are not sufficient for voice transmissions.

Especially since there is no handover from one cell to the next when the sensor is moving.

Although this saves electricity, it makes the narrowband IoT network unusable for many applications.

The new LTE-M network of the mobile radio operators manages the change from one cell to the next without problems and also has significantly shorter response times in the network than the narrowband IoT, in which sensors need ten seconds for a status update.

With LTE-M, this happens in milliseconds, and data transmission is technically around one megabit per second, both for uploads and downloads.

This means that voice transmission is possible without problems, which is a prerequisite for replacing the 2G and 3G networks.

One of the first applications is likely to be senior emergency call systems.

Even in the event of a fall in the basement, a connection to helpers could still be established, as the LTE-M network transmits in the long-wave 800 megahertz spectrum that easily extends through walls to the basement.

"We will soon see smartwatches that can use this network," says Matthias Stege, head of the Dresden company Exelonix.

The company builds solutions for the Internet of Things.

This should not only extend the battery life of the devices, but also reduce their price.

Industry is waiting for solutions

The 4G modules installed today are more power-hungry and around three times more expensive than corresponding LTE-M technology.

Exelonix has already developed a corona warning buzzer that connects to the LTE-M network.

The device is the size of a car key and functions as the Corona warning app - only without a smartphone.

The buzzer is integrated into the warning app system.

The buzzer - like the smartphones - exchanges corresponding keys via Bluetooth when people come closer over a certain period of time.

If one of the people enters the message in their app during a later positive corona test, the buzzer vibrates, lights up and rings.

The owner should be tested now.

Thanks to the LTE-M connection, the buzzer's battery lasts for a week.

The solution is currently being tested and will then be offered to older people without smartphones and to schoolchildren, among other things.

"We hope that we can use it to support the school opening next year," says Exelonix boss Stege.

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Industry is also waiting for such solutions.

The transport of goods could be tracked better than before.

The new network has long been available in other countries.

The US started building it long before Europe.

There, the eCall emergency call system uses these networks, in which the car automatically establishes a radio link to the emergency call center after an accident.

What users in Germany will have to pay for this service has not yet been determined.

Various price models are conceivable for how companies can pay for setting up the LTE-M network - for example using a second card for a mobile phone contract.

In the meantime, the network operators are also working on roaming contracts so that the networks can also be used across borders.

Telekom already has corresponding agreements with France, Belgium and the Netherlands.

Notice periods and expensive contracts - these are the new rules

Contracts for cell phones or fitness studios usually have very long terms and very long notice periods.

The Federal Minister of Justice now wants to protect consumers from this by law.

Source: WELT / Matthias Heinrich