CTS 364: Neutral Host Pullback, Wi-Fi Certs, WLAN Pi Go, WLPC, Ubiquiti, and HPE Juniper Merger

From Clear To Send: Wireless Network Engineering Rowell Dionicio and François Vergès

Thank you to Meter for supporting the podcast. We greatly appreciate it!

In this episode, we talk about the latest news around the Wireless industry.

An article from RCR Wireless by James Blackman indicates that T-Mobile is pulling back on CBRS support for neutral-host 5G. That leaves only AT&T in the same stance it has had and Verizon Wireless maintaining their viewpoint. T-Mobile will continue to offer selective support for CBRS deployments. How does this impact neutral host for vendor partners? It limits the use cases of private 5G to equipment that can take advantage of the lower frequencies and network slicing.

Cisco has announced they are bringing back the dedicated Wireless track certifications. In 2026, you will not see any wireless concepts in ENCOR. Instead, there will be new CCNP wireless certification exams: Implementing and Operating Cisco Wireless Core Technologies (350-101 WLCOR) with two concentration exams — Designing Cisco Wireless Networks (300-110 WLSD) and Implementing Cisco Wireless Advanced Solutions (WLSI 300-120)

Looking to add a tool to your wireless kit? Check out the WLAN Pi Go. It’s a portable Wi-Fi analysis tool you can take everywhere with you. Connects to your mobile phone or your laptop. It has an Intel BE200 Wi-Fi adapter supporting Wi-Fi 7 and the 6 GHz band. We’ll get a better look at it at WLPC Prague.

Speaking of, Rowell will be attending WLPC Prague and presenting. Find Rowell at the conference and ask for a sticker and a pin!

Ubiquiti shared their latest 2025 Q4 earnings report and the revenue is staggering! How is Ubiquiti not in the Gartner Magic Quadrant? We gave our thoughts and opinions of the direction Ubiquiti is taking.

HPE finally closes the acquisition of Juniper Networks. But we won’t see any big changes just yet. We predict those big changes will arrive in the coming years. How long will that honeymoon period last and what kind of changes will we expect from here on out?