IoT connectivity for smart cities: frequently asked questions
Urban projects mix very different technologies. These are the most common questions from city halls, integrators and smart-city consultants.
Which network suits urban sensors?+
NB-IoT for low-power static sensors (parking, waste, crowd counters). LTE-M when there is mobility or latency matters. Classic 4G for video or edge gateway.
Does a single SIM cover the whole city?+
Yes, with a multi-carrier IoT SIM that latches to any available network.
How much does a parking sensor consume?+
A few KB per day per event. A 1-5 MB/year pool is enough.
Do I need carrier approval to deploy 1,000 SIMs?+
No with an IoT provider. Provisioning and bulk activation happen via API or portal in minutes.
Can data stay in Spain?+
Yes, with private APN terminated in a Spanish datacenter.
How do we cap public-project spend?+
Monthly pools with automatic cap and threshold alerts. Ideal for fixed-budget tenders.
Does LoRaWAN work with your SIMs?+
LoRaWAN does not use SIM (own radio); but the LoRa gateway to backend can use a 4G IoT SIM.
What about smart street lighting?+
One SIM per cabinet controller. Very little traffic (few MB/month).
Do you support traffic and crowd cameras?+
Yes, plans with 5-30 GB/month and private APN to meet GDPR.
What happens with 2G sunset?+
Replace old hardware with LTE-M or Cat-1. The SIM is kept.
Can I group SIMs by neighbourhood or department?+
Yes, labels and sub-accounts with split billing.
Do you respond to public tenders?+
Yes, with technical memorandum, certifications and references.
What SLA do you offer?+
Platform availability SLA 99.9% and contract-based support SLAs.
Can I add more SIMs mid-year without renegotiating?+
Yes, incremental scaling with no penalty.
Are SIMs interoperable with my smart-city platform?+
Yes, standard SIMs over any public or private APN, compatible with FIWARE, Sentilo, etc.
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