LTE-only chipmaker Sequans has announced another key carrier partner. The company said its LTE Category 1 module has been certified for the AT&T network. The module supports AT&T’s LTE bands 2, 4, and 12.
The news marks a milestone for Sequans, which to date has made much more progress with Verizon than with AT&T. Verizon has already certified Sequans’ Cat M1 module. Cat M1 is a generation ahead of Cat 1, but Cat ! is more widely deployed.
The module certified by AT&T includes memory, power management and a complete RF front-end for AT&T’s LTE bands. It is pin-compatible with existing IoT modules on the AT&T network, a feature carriers value highly because it facilitates upgrades for their existing customers.
A&T said Sequans’ Cat 1 solution will be ideal for vehicle telematics, security, and surveillance because these use cases require the higher throughput that Cat 1 offers. In contrast, Cat M1 offers less throughput, along with lower price points.
AT&T is the leader among U.S. carriers when it comes to IoT connections. The carrier ended the second quarter with 33.7 million IoT/machine-to-machine connections, according to Compass Intelligence. That’s a 4% increase from the first quarter and more than twice the number of connections reported by Verizon and Sprint combined.
