AT & T completes 5G 2018 plan with southern US cities in California in 2019

AT & T today finalized its list of 12 cities that will launch its next-generation 5G network in 2018, announcing that the last five destinations will all be located in the southern United States. The company has also announced plans for early 2019 that will carry 5G in major cities of California and Nevada.

Two of AT & T's 2018 5G launch cities are in Texas: Houston and San Antonio. Florida, Kentucky and Louisiana each have one city, respectively Jacksonville, Louisville and New Orleans. They Join Atlanta, Charlotte, Dallas, Indianapolis, Oklahoma City, Raleigh and Waco Cities Already Announced as Part of the Initial, but Not All, Deployment of AT's 5G Mobile Service & T in the south.

In addition, AT & T has announced that four California cities – Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco and San Jose – will benefit from a 5G service in early 2019, alongside Las Vegas, Nashville and Orlando. Interestingly, AT & T's early 5G plans appear to be substantially missing New York and other parts of the northeastern United States, perhaps because of easier or more progressive deployment policies related to 5G elsewhere in the country.

Unlike its rival Verizon, AT & T is committed to launching standards-compliant mobile 5G services in 2018, starting with the mobile "pucks" of mobile access points that will achieve laptops and other portable wireless devices. Network-enabled smartphones are expected to make their appearance in early 2019. Verizon debuts in 5G strictly in fixed broadband hardware, starting with a range of four cities including Los Angeles and Sacramento, Indianapolis and Houston.