LTE-M vs NB-IoT: A Comparison of The Two IoT Technologies

LTE-M vs NB-IoT are two types of cellular technologies that are designed for low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) applications, such as IoT devices. They have some similarities and differences in term of speed, bandwidth, coverage, power consumption, and complexity. Here is a brief summary of the main differences:

LTE-M vs NB-IoT

Speed

LTE-M is faster than NB-IoT, offering up to 1 Mbps of data rate in both downlink and uplink for 4G networks, and up to 4 Mbps for 5G networks. On the other hand, NB-IoT can only reach up to 26 kbps in downlink and uplink for 4G networks and up to 127 kbps for 5G networks.

Bandwidth

LTE-M uses a bandwidth of 1.4 MHz, which is the same as a typical LTE resource block. NB-IoT uses a narrower bandwidth of 200 kHz, equivalent to one physical resource block within a typical LTE resource block. This means that NB-IoT can fit more devices in the same spectrum and has less data capacity and speed.

Coverage

Both LTE-M and NB-IoT have better coverage than regular LTE devices, especially in indoor and rural areas. They can use techniques like repetition and link adaptation to improve their signal quality and reliability. They also support coverage enhancement mode (CEM), which allows them to transmit at higher power levels and receive at lower signal levels. However, some sources claim that NB-IoT has a slight advantage over LTE-M in terms of maximum coupling loss (MCL), which measures the maximum loss in the conducted power level that a system can tolerate and still be operational. According to 3GPP standards, the MCL for NB-IoT is 164 dB, while the MCL for LTE-M is 160.7 dB for 4G networks and 164 dB for 5G networks. However, other sources argue that this difference is not significant and that LTE-M can achieve the same or better coverage than NB-IoT with proper configuration.

LTE-M & NB-IoT Coverage Map

NB-IoT Network Global Coverage Information

LTE-M Network Global Coverage Information

Check our whitepaper here.

What is Difference Between 4G, 5G, LTE, CAT-M, LTE-M, CAT-1, NB-IoT, and LoRaWAN – Lansitec

Learn about the what is the Difference Between 4G, 5G, LTE, CAT-M, LTE-M, CAT-1, NB-IoT, and LoRaWAN for a tracking project.