Ericsson recently announced a major expansion of its radio and antenna portfolio with the launch of new energy-efficient and high-performance solutions designed to advance programmable networks. The announcement comes ahead of Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2025 and includes seven new products, featuring cutting-edge Massive MIMO radios, indoor 5G solutions, and RAN Connect open fronthaul technologies.
With this expansion, the Swedish telecommunications giant aims to enhance network scalability, reduce energy consumption, and support the industry’s transition towards more efficient and sustainable connectivity solutions. The company projects that more than two-thirds of its radio product deliveries in 2025 will support open and programmable networks.
Energy Efficiency and Sustainability at the Core
Among the flagship innovations is the AIR 3266, an ultra-slim TDD (Time Division Duplexing) Massive MIMO radio boasting 400W output power. The new design enhances spectral efficiency and uplink performance while cutting energy consumption by up to 30 per cent and reducing embodied carbon footprint by up to 50 per cent.
Mårten Lerner, head of product area networks at Ericsson, underscored the significance of sustainable 5G technology. He said, “With 5G expected to carry 80 per cent of total mobile data traffic by 2030, we see an industry need for equipment that balances superior performance, best-in-class total cost of ownership, and unmatched sustainability.”
Ericsson’s latest advancements leverage its many-core architecture and extensive sleep modes within Ericsson Silicon to drive network efficiency. The newly introduced interleaved antennas integrate multiple M-MIMO frequency bands within a single footprint, optimizing site usage and simplifying deployment.
RAN Connect: Unlocking the Future of Open Networks
The new RAN Connect series offers open fronthaul solutions that enable communications service providers (CSPs) to aggregate radio traffic and fully utilise modern RAN Compute capabilities. The portfolio includes high-capacity solutions such as:
- RAN Connect 6381 – A 600Gbps all-outdoor solution with enhanced scalability.
- RAN Connect 6682 – A high-capacity fronthaul solution supporting up to 1.2 terabits per second (Tbps), ideal for large-scale deployments.
- RAN Connect 6681 – A versatile 600Gbps indoor solution optimised for a wide range of interface configurations.
Salim Kouidri, SVP Access Network Technology at T-Mobile, welcomed the advancements, stating, “Ericsson’s latest line-up of radios, antennas, and RAN Connect provides scalable platforms for enhanced network capabilities. As 5G Advanced becomes more integrated, these advancements will elevate the business and customer experience with a more responsive network.”
Next-Generation Radio Innovations
The expanded portfolio also introduces:
- AIR 3285 – A dual-band FDD Massive MIMO radio delivering four times the uplink capacity of traditional solutions, while reducing energy consumption by 30 per cent.
- AIR 6494 & AIR 3265 – Advanced TDD Massive MIMO radios designed for enhanced energy efficiency and reduced embodied carbon footprint.
- Radio 4451HP & Radio 4491 – High-performance FDD radios offering significant reductions in energy use and weight, further enhancing deployment flexibility.
Ericsson’s new Indoor Fusion Unit 8828 is also set to transform indoor 5G connectivity, extending coverage up to 8,000 square metres while supporting multiple operators.
Pioneering Network Evolution
With these latest innovations, Ericsson reinforces its leadership in next-generation RAN technology. Mark Düsener, chief technology and information officer at Swisscom, highlighted the importance of balancing performance with efficiency. “If we focus on delivering the right performance when needed and scaling it back when it is not, we can lower our total cost of ownership while meeting evolving demands,” said Düsener.
As CSPs accelerate their network transformations, Ericsson’s latest advancements offer a compelling pathway to high-performing, sustainable, and programmable networks that align with the future of 5G and beyond. 
For more details, visit Ericsson’s newsroom.
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