e& UAE, the flagship telecommunications operator of global technology group e&, has announced a major milestone in the performance of its live 5.5G network with the commercial deployment of 4-Carrier Aggregation combining Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) and Time Division Duplex (TDD) spectrum, marking the first deployment of its kind in the region.
The 4-Carrier Aggregation capability enables smartphones to simultaneously access four network carriers, resulting in faster and more stable connectivity, particularly in high-traffic areas. By aggregating multiple channels, the network delivers smoother download and upload performance, with peak downlink speeds exceeding 4 Gbps on compatible devices. The integration also maintains consistent coverage by leveraging the resilience of FDD spectrum, enhancing real-world user experience across a wide range of environments.
The advanced FDD-TDD multicarrier integration significantly improves network capacity and efficiency by combining FDD’s broad and reliable coverage with TDD’s high-throughput capabilities. This allows the network to support data-intensive applications such as 8K video streaming, cloud gaming and advanced enterprise services. Achieving these capabilities on commercially available smartphones highlights strong ecosystem readiness and accelerates the transition toward mass adoption of 5.5G-Advanced technologies.
e& UAE said it remains focused on deploying the latest 3GPP-aligned 5G-Advanced enhancements to increase customer value and future-proof its network evolution strategy. Recent performance achievements include reaching uplink speeds of 600 Mbps on a live 5G network, demonstrating continued progress in enhancing both downlink and uplink capabilities.
Abdulrahman Al Humaidan, Senior Vice President, Access Network Development at e& UAE, said: “This latest advancement further strengthens our live 5.5G network with sustained multi-gigabit speeds and expanded capacity. It reflects our strategic investment in advanced spectrum assets and 5G-Advanced technologies to deliver high performance and reliability for customers across the UAE.”
The 4-Carrier Aggregation capability is already live in select areas and is slated for wider rollout across the e& UAE network in 2026 and beyond, bringing significant real-world enhancements in speed consistency, coverage performance and capacity. By anchoring the solution on FDD spectrum, the network ensures seamless support for voice over New Radio (VoNR) services even as users experience multi-gigabit data speeds through aggregated TDD capacity. This approach also supports ongoing efforts to refarm 4G spectrum to 5G, driving network efficiency and future-ready capacity enhancements.
E& UAE is actively collaborating with leading technology vendors and device manufacturers to widen the availability of 5.5G-Advanced features across devices and accelerate deployment timelines, ensuring optimal customer impact aligned with the latest 3GPP releases.
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