Vodafone launches 5G in London & 6 more UK cities
Mobile operator Vodafone has launched its 5G network in seven cities in the UK, saying it hopes to become the “5G destination” for users.
The telecoms giant will also introduce roaming in Spain, Italy, and Germany by the end of July—the first network to offer 5G roaming – and will expand the new network to 19 key UK cities by the end of 2019.
Its 5G network has gone live in Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Glasgow, Liverpool, London, and Manchester.
Vodafone confirmed it will offer the Samsung Galaxy S10 5G and the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 5G as its first devices on the new network, following a number of other mobile operators leaving Huawei out of its 5G phone launch line-up.
The operator did not acknowledge Huawei’s absence during its 5G launch event.
The Chinese firm is the subject of a UK government review into whether it should be allowed into “non-core” parts of the UK’s 5G network infrastructure.
How fast is 5G? vodafone uk 5g
5G is around 10 times faster than 4G. It’s designed to work at average speeds of 150–200 Mbps, and peak speeds can reach above 1 Mbps. This means you’ll be able to download a full HD film in around 3 minutes (compared to over 15 minutes on 4G).
- Where 5G works at average speeds of 150-200Mbps, 4G works at average speeds of 23-35Mbps.
- Where 5G can reach peak speeds higher than 1Gbps by default, basic 4G works at a maximum speed of 150Mbps, while 4G EVO (a later, faster version of 4G) can reach up to 800 Mbps depending on device capability and the number of carriers deployed.
5G speeds can vary, and depend on multiple factors, such as how far away you are from a mast, which spectrum is being used, and how many people around you are using 5G.
