Sprint 5G network launched in Atlanta, Dallas, Kansas City and Houston

Sprint today launches its 5G network in Atlanta, Dallas, Houston and Kansas City, becoming the third major US operator to launch the new mobile data era. "It will probably be the biggest initial launch of 5G in terms of coverage and footprint," Sprint CTO John Saw told reporters in Dallas this morning. In this city, Sprint's 5G footprint covers an area of ​​575 square miles and has a population of approximately 1.6 million. "It's only the beginning," Saw said. Sprint offers a cover map showing where customers can expect to receive a 5G signal at launch, which their competitors have not yet done.

But for Sprint, 5G is more than a cover: it's a question of reliability. Competing companies Verizon and AT & T have focused their efforts on launching 5G technology on millimeter-wave technology, which offers unmatched data transmission speeds of up to 1 Gbps, but with the compromise of Coverage extremely uneven.

In the case of Verizon, the coverage is strong when you are near one of its 5G nodes, but decreases rapidly when you move away and disappears completely when the node is lost to view. The inner cover is also virtually non-existent, Verizon falling back to LTE speeds because windows and walls are enough to defeat millimeter waves. Sprint executives described Verizon's current configuration as a "5G hotspot network", which is a pretty brutal burn.

In contrast, Sprint uses what it calls "split mode" to allow devices to combine 5G NR and LTE Advanced for faster download speeds and, more importantly, a somewhat consistent 5G coverage. Sprint is not based on the same high-frequency millimeter-wave technology as Verizon and AT & T at the moment. Instead, it builds the 5G above its 2.5 GHz wireless spectrum of medium band. According to Saw, Sprint's 5G markets are divided into dedicated LTE and 5G resources. "We do not share the spectrum. We do not steal bandwidth from LTE users and you will not see a slowdown in 5G just because LTE clients use a lot of data. Saw insists that this is not possible only with the millimeter wave. "I think we are the only US operator to be able to launch our 5G network with exactly the same coverage as LTE, one on the other."

But how fast is it? Sprint's promise is up to five times faster than LTE technology. "We are trying to set the right expectations," Saw said. "You should see more than 100 Mbps when you drive." Sprint drove the media for a short three-kilometer bus ride to demonstrate moving speeds. The new LG V50 remained above the 100 Mbps mark throughout the test and never gave up on Sprint's 5G network during the ride. Peak speeds reached between 500 and 600 Mbps when we stopped and were at a standstill. But Sprint is definitely conservative in its orientations and repeats that it is the first day and that improvements will occur early and often.

Nevertheless, some people will inevitably be overwhelmed by these maximum speeds. "It's barely better than what I get now," is an easy criticism, but you also have to think about actual speeds, compared to advertised or theoretical performance. Sprint indicates that its LTE customers typically use around 30 Mbps.

Sprint says it will cover about 11.5 million people once it completes the launch of its initial 5G launch in these cities:

• Atlanta (available now) 150 square miles, approx. 565,000 people
• Chicago (coming soon)
• Dallas-Fort Worth (available now) 575 square miles, approx. 1.6 million people
• Houston (available now) 165 square miles, approx. 800,000 people
• Kansas City (available now) 225 square miles, approx. 625,000 people
• Los Angeles (coming soon)
• New York City (coming soon)
• Phoenix (coming soon)

The first two devices compatible with the operator's 5G technology are the LG V50 and the HTC 5G Hub, both marketed on May 31st. The V50 has a 6.4-inch OLED display and similar specifications to the G8, but you should know that it also has a 5G logo on the back that glows yellow, which looks much like on for a first 5G wave phone. The 5G Hub is a strange little device that mainly serves as a point of Wi-Fi and Ethernet access. It supports up to 20 simultaneous device connections. But the Hub also uses Android 9 Pie on its 5-inch 720p screen, integrates Google Assistant and offers, according to Sprint, a multitude of streaming opportunities for content and 4K games on your TV screen. According to Sprint, the Galaxy S10 5G will follow these devices this summer, once the Verizon exclusive will be complete.

Image: LG

When Saw spoke with reporters, he compared the ideal structure of the 5G network to a wedding cake. High frequency millimeter waves will provide the breathtaking speeds I've seen with Verizon in Chicago. The average 2.5 GHz band spectrum will improve the reliability and stability of the 5G coverage. And a low bandwidth "sub-6" spectrum will be crucial to ensure that 5G can significantly reach indoor sites and difficult coverage areas. As you can imagine, he mentioned the T-Mobile merger as essential, as this company has many bands in the frequency band that would complement those of Sprint.

"The United States has an opportunity to win the race at 5G, and allowing the merger between Sprint and T-Mobile would allow America to show the way," Sprint President Michel Combes said Thursday. "Only the new T-Mobile would have the network and spectrum capacity needed to deliver the right 5G experience to customers."

I am in Dallas and will be submitting the first two Sprint 5G products to a thorough test over the next two days. So, if you have any questions, get started in the comments.