Antennas for small cells
n77 omni, sector and lamp-post antennas for private 5G in the 3.8–4.2 GHz shared access band, made for buildings, lamp posts and poles rather than towers.
Most of the private 5G networks we build run in the 3.8–4.2 GHz shared access band, with the radio on the side of a building, a lamp post or a short pole rather than on a mobile phone mast. On sites like these the antenna does more to decide where the signal lands than almost anything else in the build, and yet it is often whatever came in the box. These are the antennas we use on our own networks, and we sell them individually.
Each page carries the full specification and, where the manufacturer has measured it, the radiation pattern across the band, so you can see what you are buying before you buy it.
Supplied to order, typically in 4 to 12 weeks. We have a small amount of antennas in stock in the UK, so please send us an enquiry and we will do what we can to help. UK delivery is £5 per antenna.
Photographs are illustrative, generated to show how each antenna looks installed. Each product page also shows the manufacturer's own picture.
Choosing between them
Firstly, where is the radio relative to the people it serves? An omni suits a radio in the middle of its coverage area, a farmyard or the centre of a holiday park, and it is the cheapest way to cover all round. However, it spreads its power in every direction, including the ones where nobody is, and hears interference from all of them too. Where the users are to one side of the mounting point, which on the wall of a building they almost always are, a sector puts the same power where it is needed and reaches further for it.
Secondly, how high is it? The long 615 mm panels have an 8° vertical beam, which throws the signal a long way from a high mount but can pass over the heads of people close to the pole. The compact 4-port box has a 33° vertical beam; it reaches less far, but on a lamp post at five metres the people underneath and across the street stay inside it.
Thirdly, how many ports does the radio have? One antenna port per transmit chain is the rule: a single-port antenna for a 1T1R radio, the 2-port cross-polarised sector for 2T2R, the 4-port box for 4T4R. Fitting fewer ports than the radio has leaves MIMO capacity on the table; fitting more leaves ports terminated and wasted.
Ultimately however, the right antenna is the one that matches the site, and we are happy to look at a site with you before you order. Send an enquiry from any product page and tell us what you are trying to cover.
Questions
- Are the prices inclusive of VAT?
- No. Prices are shown excluding VAT, because most of our buyers are businesses. The order form shows the VAT-inclusive total, and Stripe works out the exact amount at checkout; businesses can enter a VAT number there and it appears on the invoice.
- How long will delivery take?
- Allow 4 to 12 weeks. Most orders are supplied from the manufacturer, but we have a small amount of antennas in stock in the UK, so please send us an enquiry and we will do what we can to help. Delivery within the UK is £5 per antenna.
- Can you deliver outside the UK?
- Yes, but not through the online checkout. Send us an enquiry with the destination and we will quote delivery.
- Which antenna do I need?
- Start from where the radio is relative to the people it serves. In the middle of the area, an omni; to one side, a sector. Then match the ports to the radio: one per transmit chain, so a 2T2R small cell wants a 2-port antenna and a 4T4R one a 4-port. If you are unsure, tell us about the site in an enquiry and we will suggest one.
- Will these work with an operator's spectrum as well as shared access?
- The omnis and the 1-, 2- and 4-port sectors are built for 3.8–4.2 GHz, the band Ofcom licenses for shared access. The lamp-post wraparound covers 3.3–4.2 GHz, so it also suits the mobile operators' n77/n78 holdings below 3.8 GHz.
Building a network rather than buying parts? See what a private 5G network needs, or order SIMs programmed with your own network identity.