EF Johnson announces P25 Phase 2 solution, industry’s smallest base station

EF Johnson Technologies recently announced its move into the P25 Phase 2 arena during the recent IWCE 2015 show, featuring a fully software-defined base station that company officials say is the industry’s smallest platform.

Arindam Roy, director of product management for EF Johnson, said other manufacturers have offered P25 Phase 2 base stations earlier, but the EF Johnson solution can help network operators use valuable rack space efficiently.

“We are coming in a little late, but we are coming in at a much better product in the marketplace,” Roy said during an interview with IWCE’s Urgent Communications. “First of all, this is smallest Phase 2 base station you can see in the marketplace—it is 40% of the size of other repeaters. Pretty much every other repeater is around five rack units [in size]; we are two rack units. And it takes a lot to do the same functionality in 40% of the size of a comparable repeater.”

This characteristic not only can help a network operator save space, but money, Roy said.

“Rack space is expensive, because you are taking real estate in a crowded building,” he said.

But the smaller size of the base station does not mean that EF Johnson took shortcuts that negatively impact performance, Roy said.

“The specification of this repeater far exceeds any other specification in the marketplace, in terms of its performance,” Roy said. “For example, in terms of receiver sensitivity, the industry standard is 117 dB, and we are at 122 dB—that’s a huge performance improvement.”

In addition, setup of the system is relatively straightforward, Roy said.

“This has an ultralinear power amplifier, which takes out all of the guesswork,” Roy said. “Typically, most repeaters out there have to be hand-tuned to a particular frequency, but this one has the full bandwidth. So, you just set the frequency and you are done—it is fully digitally configured and digitally tuned. There is no manual tuning of a repeater to a particular sub-band or a particularly frequency, etc.”

The new EF Johnson P25 base station—able to support operations on both P25 Phase 1 FDMA 12.5 kHz channels and P25 Phase 2 TDMA 6.25 kHz channels—comes with all of low-latency and total-cost-of-ownership benefits associated with EF Johnson’s distributed ATLAS architecture, Roy said.

This flexibility gives network operators much-wanted choices as they make strategic decisions involving P25 deployments, according to Karthik Rangarajan, EF Johnson’s vice president of marketing.

“Our clients now have the freedom to control their migration path to Phase 2 which offers enhanced spectral efficiency and greater channel capacity. Importantly, new clients have the power to future‐proof their P25 investment and comply with any future regulatory changes based on the most advanced hardware and software platform in the industry today,” Rangarajan said in a prepared statement. “ATLAS P25 Phase 1 and 2 systems are available in all system types, including trunked, conventional, simulcast and hybrid operation in VHF, UHF and 700/800 MHz frequency bands. “

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Kenwood Purchases EFJ

 EF Johnson Technologies, Inc. announced today that JVCKENWOOD Corporation has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the company from its current owner, Francisco Partners. The transaction is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2014 subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions. This pending acquisition is integral to JVCKENWOOD's overall strategic initiative to increase its focus on professional communications, especially the U.S. public safety market.

Kenwood NX-240

Kenwood has released a new, sleek digital radio to the market which is able to compete with Vertex's New eVerge Digital Radios and Motorola XPR Series. These are sleek radios at an affordable price which can help the upgrading process become much more affordable for companies. 

Introducing Kenwood NX-240

Introducing Kenwood NX-240

Rethink use of public network for your business

An efficient line of communication within your companies!

            In this day and age, cellphones have become the primary source of communication within most companies. Although investing in cellphones as the main source of communication for your company may seem like a feasible solution at first, after a closer look at the statistics, you may realize the negative implications, higher cost and the lack of profit in the long run.

            An employee’s efficient use of time at work is one of the main necessities for success and growth of a company. With this point in mind, an employer should always provide the most dynamic and advanced equipment minus unnecessary distractions.  Research has shown that the average person checks their phone approximately 150 times a day (once every 6.5 mins).  Studies also show that over two hours of an average person’s day is spent on their phones checking emails and social media, texting or playing games. Unless you are able to limit and control the usage of the cellphones provided to your employees, chances are the distractions caused by them will have a greater negative impact rather than positive.

As the company grows and the number of employees increase, so does the number of necessary phones and therefore the monthly payments. In most cases cellphone providers offer lower prices for both service and equipment only if you commit to a two-year contract. Also the lack of stability and availability of cellular networks can easily disrupt the flow of your business, especially in the case of an emergency.

            Last but not least, how important is information security to your business? In a public network you are vulnerable to interference from anyone. Cellular signals are open to public, therefore the chances of cyber intruders intercepting your line of communication is much greater than a secure, private two-way network within the company. Why put your business at risk of interference and poor service when you can have a safe, efficient and guaranteed line of communication?