British carrier EE announced its plans for a 5G rollout a while back, and today the company has provided a little more information about the upcoming network revolution. In a statement to Pocket-lint, CEO Marc Allera said that 5G service will launch in the UK as soon as this summer. While there still isn"t a set date for the rollout, the summer timeframe is narrower than the previously announced 2019 window, and it"s also probably a little sooner than some were expecting.
Pricing might not hold as many surprises, though. As happened with 4G when it launched, EE will be charging a premium if you want to jump up to the higher data speeds, though it"s also not clear just how much more customers will be paying. Allera believes the price hike is justified by the improved experience, saying that customers "will be prepared to pay a few pounds more" for the benefits.
The carrier previously said that its 5G service will be available in 16 cities across the UK in 2019, but the initial launch will target just six - London, Cardiff, Belfast, Edinburgh, Birmingham, and Manchester. The remaining ten cities to get the new network before the year is out will be Bristol, Coventry, Glasgow, Hull, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, Newcastle, Nottingham, and Sheffield.
EE isn"t without competition in the UK as far as 5G goes. Trials have been underway for both Vodafone and O2"s networks, and they"re likely to respond to EE"s launch.
Source: Pocket-lint