Verizon will be bringing its 5G technology to 30 U.S. cities by the end of the year, according to reports.
The wireless giant didn’t specify the cities or the method of deployment, but it did say it would include extremely fast millimeter wave radios.
“It’s just gonna be a total different experience in speed and throughput than you have ever seen before,” Hans Vestberg, Verizon’s CEO, said during a meeting with investors on Thursday (Feb. 21).
Verizon also made a specification between this new service and its 5G home internet service, saying this would be a different offering.
Though details are scant, Verizon is the official partner of Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy S10 5G, which is supposed to go on sale in the first half of the year. This means more details should be announced soon.
“It’s not too far away,” Vestberg said in reference to the phone. “I want it tomorrow, but it’s not going to be tomorrow.”
T-Mobile has also said it was going to launch 5G in 30 cities as well. As for AT&T, it reportedly launched 5G service in these cities: Houston, Texas; Dallas, Texas; Atlanta, Texas; Waco, Texas; Charlotte, North Carolina; Raleigh, North Carolina; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Jacksonville, Florida; Louisville, Kentucky; New Orleans, Louisiana; Indianapolis, Indiana and San Antonio, Texas.
“The initial rollout was available to particular businesses and consumers only, but everyone else will have access in 2019 when AT&T makes their NETGEAR Nighthawk 5G Mobile Hotspot available for purchase.”
Analysts expect a rollout of the new 5G phones in the coming months.
At the CES show in Las Vegas in January, companies demonstrated potential 5G use cases. “For instance, Verizon is partnering with Walt Disney’s StudioLab to explore how next-generation connectivity can improve Disney’s content production and transmission,” read one account. “Meanwhile, Skyward President Mariah Scott said that Verizon is committed to being the first to connect one million drone flights on its 5G network.”