5G x-Haul was a key topic at the annual OFC show last week, along with new generations of optical technology such as 800G. One development was the publication of a joint technical paper by Nokia, Ericsson, II-VI, Lumentum and Sumitomo Electric, arguing the case for reducing the wide choice of Mobile Optical Pluggables (MOPA) that are used to connect mobile cell sites to fiber networks. The group wants to establish a small set of pre-defined blueprints that use common optical pluggables. Recommendations include optical characteristics such as data rates, reach, power, wavelengths as well as mechanical characteristics such as form factor, heat dissipation and operational temperature. Meanwhile, the Open XR Forum made its debut, with founders including Verizon, Lumen Technologies,…