Smartphone brands are prepping upgrades for existing 5G smartphones to support standalone (SA) 5G networks amid plans by Reliance Jio to roll out a SA network, as per reports.

Mukesh Ambani , chairman, Reliance Industries says, “The most telcos are deploying non-standalone 5G (NSA) in the rush to be the first to launch. Jio, on the other hand, will launch SA 5G.”

In the NSA mode, only the RAN (radio access network) is upgraded to 5G, while the core network remains on existing 4G infrastructures.

Besides, both RAN and core networks are upgraded to 5G for the SA mode. A 5G core includes virtualized, software-based network functions, which allows telcos to meet diverse network needs that aren’t possible in the NSA version of 5G.

Jio is expected to start SA 5G services from Diwali, in late October, while Airtel plans to roll out its 5G services the same month on the NSA mode.

According to reports, most 5G phones in India support NSA 5G networks, but consumers will be able to connect to SA 5G once updates start rolling. The upgrades will be rolled out like any other over-the-air (OTA) update of core software on smartphones. Of the top five smartphone sellers, Xiaomi, Oppo and Realme are among brands that are working on the SA 5G update.

Muralikrishnan B, President, Xiaomi India says, “All the 5G devices we have launched in the last one year support 2100MHz, 1800MHz, 900MHz, and 3300-3800 MHz bands on NSA mode. SA mode will require an over-the-air update, which we are working on and expect to roll out by the time networks start rolling out.”

Tasleem Arif, vice president and head of R&D, Oppo India says, “The company is in the process of upgrading the current 5G devices to the SA network in collaboration with telcos. We have worked with these players to build a comprehensive 5G experience for the users and become one of the leading players in DSS, VONR, SA network slicing, and other technologies.”