Several more towns and cities across the UK are being added to EE’s 5G network for the first time.
Last month the mobile operator launched its upgraded 5G network in London, Edinburgh, Belfast and Cardiff as well as other metropolitan areas.
The introduction of 5G isn’t universally popular, with the installation of masts causing controversy in some places – but EE now plans to roll it out to 16 more town and cities.
Standalone 5G is designed to boost mobile performance as it is built on new, end-to-end 5G infrastructure for the first time, while removing any reliance on older 4G infrastructure.
EE, which is part of the BT Group, says the network also uses artificial intelligence to reduce power to parts of infrastructure when they were not in use and improve energy efficiency.
With these 16 new locations added by the end of the year, there will be more than 12million people covered by the new 5G network.
EE chief executive Marc Allera said the new network had been ‘designed to unleash the huge potential of a wave of AI-powered devices’.
‘5G standalone is a new mobile network giving enhanced performance to customers from day one and unlocks game-changing new services of the future,’ he said.
‘It’s been built to handle the growing range of AI-powered devices, from smartphones to laptops, tablets and more.’
EE believes the technology will be the backbone of future services, as it would be well placed to handle the growing number of AI-powered services, many of which require more energy and bandwidth to run smoothly.
Customers could see improvements in their phone’s battery life because of the improved energy efficiency of the network.
Full list of new locations joining EE’s standalone 5G network by end of 2024
- Aston-under-Lyne
- Barrow-in-Furness
- Barry
- Birkenhead
- Bury
- Coventry
- Dudley
- Dundee
- Newport
- Nottingham
- St Helens
- Stockport
- Swansea
- Weston Super Mare
- Wigan
- Wolverhampton
What is 5G and where and how is it being rolled out?
5G is the next generation of wireless communication technology, much faster and with a higher capacity than its 4G predecessor.
It allows more users and devices to access faster internet speeds and large amounts of data at the same time.
It also has the potential to enable a variety of ‘smart’ applications, like in connected vehicles and automated manufacturing, but the technology for this is still in development.
Currently 5G is primarily being rolled out by private mobile network operators EE, O2, Vodafone and Three.
The first 5G networks went live in major UK cities in 2019. Ofcom estimated that in September 2023, 85 to 93% of UK premises could get 5G coverage outdoors from at least one operator.
5G networks are initially being built on top of legacy 4G equipment. This is called ‘non-standalone’ 5G.
While it can deliver enhanced mobile broadband, the more advanced uses envisioned for 5G will require ‘standalone’ networks.
Deployment of standalone 5G, which utilises dedicated 5G equipment in all parts of the network, is at an early stage.
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