Ericsson lined up a reduced capability (RedCap) software offering for use across standalone (SA) 5G networks which it claimed will spur additional use cases.

The vendor plans to have the software available in November, with potential uses for RedCap including consumer wearables, sensors for industrial IoT, video surveillance equipment and smart grids.

David Hammarwall, head of product area Networks for Ericsson, noted some 5G devices do not always need the high-performance capability of the technology’s full range.

Bill Stone, VP for technology planning at Verizon, stated Ericsson’s RedCap evolution will allow the operator to more efficiently allocate its network resources to give an improved user experience.

Ericsson is working with leading chipset vendors including MediaTek to bring multiple types of RedCap devices to the market.

Earlier this year, Qualcomm announced it had developed a chipset compatible with RedCap specifications, with availability across commercial products expected in 2024.

Standards body 3GPP introduced RedCap, or NR-Light, in its Release-17 standard to enable a wider range of low-powered, low-cost devices across 5G networks.