Digi is delivering 5G! We are excited about the capabilities our customers will be able to tap into with 5G deployments, and the many new possibilities that it will ultimately enable – from the most advanced Industry 4.0 applications to full implementation of connected vehicle technology to practical applications for augmented and virtual reality in the science, industry and medical realms.
We are constantly driving forward. Our goal is to ensure that customers who have applications that require the speed and low latency of 5G have a roadmap and migration path. And for customers who can achieve the performance they need with 4G LTE and Gigabit-class LTE, Digi is firmly committed to supporting these customers in optimizing and future-proofing their investment.
There is no single solution that meets all application requirements. And that is why Digi supports the full breadth of customer needs – from those who want longevity from their current deployments to those who are ready for what's next.
5G Product Innovation at Digi
In addition to development teams that are focusing on new product introduction, Digi has established an advanced technology innovation team to investigate 5G and other new technologies. They delve into many aspects of 5G that appear in our new products, such as new cellular modem capabilities, new antenna types, and cellular router form factors.
Our roadmap includes both new ground-up products as well as adaptations of award-winning products that our customers love, such as our modular routers with change-able Digi CORE® Plug-in modules.
In this blog post, we will take a spin through Digi's 5G products as well as our 5G-ready products, to help you assess the right solution for your requirements.
Digi 5G-Native Solutions
These solutions have 5G built-in and can deliver the 5G benefits to your business today.
Combined with
Digi Remote Manager®, Digi's 5G software and hardware provide best-in-class performance for high-speed wired and wireless connectivity to advance mission-critical networks. Digi Remote Manager serves as the command center of an intelligent network, providing centralized control of device configuration and management, security, edge intelligence, and day-to-day network management. As a cloud-based offering, Digi Remote Manager makes it easy to add, activate and safeguard new devices – all from a desktop, tablet or phone.
Digi EX50
Digi® EX50 is the 5G go-to cellular router with 5G/4G dual connectivity and Wi-Fi 6 for organizations requiring fast, reliable, and secure primary or backup enterprise branch office connectivity. Future-proof your network with the power of 5G and easily deploy, monitor, and manage it with Digi Remote Manager.
This high-performance, all-in-one router reduces cost and increases uptime by eliminating the complexity of multiple devices. Wi-Fi 6 and WPA3 improve wireless user experiences with top-end speed, security, capacity, and range.
Dual 2.5 Gigabit Ethernet ports break the Gigabit barrier and deliver 5G speeds for future-ready enterprise networks. Power flexibility simplifies the installation and provides redundancy.5G go-to cellular router with 5G/4G dual connectivity and Wi-Fi 6 for organizations requiring fast, reliable, and secure primary or backup enterprise branch office connectivity.
Digi TX64 5G
Digi TX64 5G is a high-performance 5G cellular router with dual redundant communications for complex transit and transportation systems
This dual-connectivity 5G/LTE-Advanced Pro cellular router ready for mission critical industrial and public transit applications, with industry-leading dual redundant modems (including Band 14 for FirstNet and Band 71 for T-Mobile), and high-speed Wi-Fi 5 radios. Digi TX64 is FirstNet Ready™ for emergency response and extended primary applications.
Digi TX64 5G Rail
Digi TX64 5G Rail is a high-performance, railway-rated 5G cellular router for on-board heavy and light rail railways and metros.
Ideal for challenging rail transportation environments, Digi TX64 5G Rail offers 5G/4G/3G cellular connectivity with true enterprise class routing, security, firewall and integrated VPN. It offers a flexible interface design with an integrated Wi-Fi access point and client, USB, serial, Bluetooth® and 4-port Gigabit Ethernet switch, as well as a variety of configuration options.
Digi TX64 5G Rail is equipped with precision train positioning via an Untethered Dead Reckoning (UDR) technology that reports location data more accurately by taking into account acceleration, speed and angular rate. Regardless of issues with traditional GNSS in certain weather conditions or tunnels, UDR allows you to monitor the train’s exact positioning and speed, optimize each train’s location and prevent collisions without the use of additional onboard systems.
Digi 5G-Ready Solutions
In addition to our 5G native products, Digi has a range of solutions designed to deliver near-5G capabilities for rapid, reliable, economical deployments. These solutions have all the security, speed, and centralized management that you have come to expect from Digi. If you are not certain whether the time is right to move to 5G, we have the next best thing. Contact us for help assessing which solution is right for you.
Digi TX54
Digi TX54 is a rugged and secure cellular router platform for mission critical industrial, transportation and traffic management applications with dual Cat 12 LTE-Advanced modems (including Band 14 for FirstNet), high-speed Wi-Fi 5 radios and integrated TrustFence® security.
Digi TX54 is FirstNet Ready™ for emergency response and extended primary applications.
Digi EX15
Digi® EX15 with the Digi CORE® Plug-in Cat 18 module is a cellular extender with Gigabit Ethernet and Wi-Fi connectivity for retailers and other organizations that cannot tolerate network downtime and the negative impact on revenue streams and brand reputation.
The Digi CORE® module integrated into this product is designed to support product flexibility and to future-proof your deployments. Digi EX50 supports a wide range of indoor use-cases beyond A/C controlled spaces with an extended operating temperature range, such as smart factories, warehouses, construction sites or infrastructure sheds.
These 5G-ready products have the processing power and Gigabit Ethernet ports to support the more power hungry and higher bandwidth 5G applications on the horizon.
Enabling the 5G Future, Starting Today
Today,
4G LTE is still growing, and will be going strong for at least a decade to come. Fortunately, it provides excellent speed and bandwidth to support most IoT applications today. LTE and 5G networks will co-exist, as applications begin to migrate and then 5G networks and applications eventually supersede 4G LTE.
It’s not surprising that the first 5G products are the high-bandwidth, high-speed products. Today, 5G technology is still very expensive compared to LTE. As prices come down, we’ll roll-out 5G cellular solutions across our product line. In the meantime, our LTE cellular solutions continue to have the best total cost of ownership for many of our customers.
We’re also keeping an eye on 5G infrastructure build-out. Carriers are making quick progress on 5G networks in urban areas. 5G is well-suited for dense urban areas, especially for the fastest variant of 5G, called mmWave, which has much shorter range capability than LTE. You’ll likely see 5G towers every few blocks, to accommodate the shorter, faster variants of 5G. Questions still remain on the feasibility of bringing this technology to suburban and rural areas.
What does this challenge for rural areas mean for our customers? Digi customers with locations in rural areas, such as utilities, industrial equipment monitoring, and retail in small towns, can anticipate 4G LTE will continue to be a mainstay for years to come.
The future of 5G is bright and Digi is excited to bring new 5G products to market. We’re committed to building quality solutions and offering cutting edge services to enable our customers’ business development and innovations, for today and into the future.
Contact us for your current and future IoT needs, whether you are migrating from 2G/3G to 4G LTE or planning your 5G application.
This blog was initially published in 2021, and was updated in January, 2022.