The number of IoT devices and deployments is expanding by leaps and bounds. However, figuring out how to put IoT solutions together can be a challenge given the fragmented ecosystem. Even if you already have an IoT implementation in place, however, you may be wondering what your next step will be in light of AT&T sunsetting its 2G network.
Never fear, says Norman Miglietta, marketing director at Kore Telematics (News - Alert), who suggests LTE is the way to go in the long term. Kore’s message here at ITEXPO this week, he says, is that LTE is the future.
What path to LTE (News - Alert) is best will depend upon a business’s specific requirements, says Miglietta, so Kore is helping organizations understand the different options they can consider. The Cat-1 version of LTE is available now, he says, so businesses that are ready can begin to move in that direction. However, some companies may opt to wait for Cat-0 or even Cat-M, he said. (Cat-1, Cat-0, and Cat-M, by the way, are IoT variants of LTE technology. They are designed for lower-bandwidth and more power-efficient connectivity for the Internet of Things.)
Kore can help its customers navigate those transitions, says Miglietta.
Those who are not yet ready to make the transition, he adds, may want to move from AT&T’s (News - Alert) 2G network to the T-Mobile 2G network to get more life out of their existing 2G equipment investments. At the same time, he says, that will give them more time before transitioning to LTE, which may keep them connected until Cat-M is ready to roll.
There might be another application like a mobile health device, he added; for something like that coverage and reliability are critical. So Mobile Help, a company in that product category, elected to go from AT&T’s 2G network to AT&T’s 3G service for the time being, he says, and it can start building an LTE solution in the meantime.