The company is using a Non-standalone 5G New Radio deployment focused on using the combined power of 4G and 5G technologies
EE’s 5G service in now live in 80 towns and cities across the country, announced the UK carrier.
The operator turned on UK’s first 5G network in May 2019 across six cities, including some areas of London, Edinburgh, Cardiff, Belfast, Birmingham, and Manchester. The network had targeted to bring 5G connectivity in 45 cities and large towns by the end of 2019.
The company is using a Non-standalone 5G New Radio deployment focused on using the combined power of 4G and 5G technologies. In a second phase from 2022, it will introduce the full 5G core network, enhanced device chipset capabilities, and increased availability of 5G-ready spectrum. A third phase, beginning in 2023, will introduce Ultra-Reliable Low Latency Communications (URLLC), network slicing and multi-gigabit-per-second speeds.
EE’s 5G tariffs were upgraded recently. Customers can access the 5G network with the following plans: 60GB data at 24 GBP (27 EUR) per month, 100GB data at 27 GBP (30 EUR) per month, 200GB data at 31 GBP (35 EUR) per month and unlimited data at 35 GBP (40 EUR) per month. Compared to November 2019, prices for the same quantity of data have been divided by two! Prices for EE’s 5G plans in November 2019, started at GBP 41 (48 EUR) a month for 10GB of data, rising to GBP 69 (81 EUR) a month for unlimited data.
UK telecommunications regulator Ofcom confirmed plans to award additional 5G-suitable spectrum in November 2020 the earliest. Find more information about the planned 5G auction here.
