Verizon's 5G Will Be Launched for the First Time in Chicago and Minneapolis on April 11 – TechCrunch



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Verizon announced today the details of the launch of its first standards-based 5G wireless service. Starting April 11th, 5G will be available in all areas of Chicago and Minneapolis. Current subscribers can expect to pay $ 10 more per month for access, and at launch, the only device supported is the Motorola Z3 with the 5G Moto Mod.

Once available, Verizon will support the Samsung Galaxy S10 5G and LG's V50 ThinQ later in the year.

Prices start at $ 85 a month for the basic Go Unlimited package and go up from there. In 4G, the three eligible plans are subject to data limitation after a given amount of data, but in 5G this is not the case. Verizon says that he's not going to strangle the 5G data. "The use of 5G data with the motorcycle mod is unlimited, without any data priority," said the carrier.

It will be Verizon's first standards-based 5G network. Last year, Verizon launched the 5G home service based on proprietary specifications. The launch of 5G in Chicago, Minneapolis and possibly in other cities is different and based on standards developed by 3GPP. Both 5G networks are not compatible, which means that owners of a 5G phone will not be able to use the 5G home network.

At launch, Verizon subscribers can only access the 5G with Moto Z3 and Moto 5G add-ons. For a limited time, the 5G Moto Mod is on sale for $ 50. The required Moto Z3 is also on sale for a limited time.

Verizon has announced plans to bring 5G to more than 30 cities by 2019. When launched, the network will only be available in parts of Chicago and Minneapolis. The carrier has not disclosed the deployment plan for additional cities.

In Chicago, Verizon says 5G will be limited to areas around The Loop, Gold Coast, River North and Old Town. For Minneapolis, 5G will win in Downtown West, Downtown East and Elliot Park.

Verizon is not the only one to slowly roll out the 5G. Operators from around the world are deploying their first 5G networks. At the MWC Barcelona 2019, a Qualcomm manager said in 2019 that 20 mobile operators are launching 5G in 60 markets. At the end of 2018, the first 5G network was launched in the United States, followed by three services in South Korea. Availability is limited in each market as operators submit the systems to stress tests and deploy them slowly to different users. In Korea, at the time of launch, the networks were available only for companies.

Last month, AT & T started modifying the 4G logos of some Android phones in 5G E. While the phones reach slightly higher speeds, they do not run, despite the AT & T marketing, on a 5G network . AT & T's peers quickly called the carrier and Sprint filed a lawsuit in which he said, "What AT & T boasts in 5G, however, is nothing more than a service without Improved fourth-generation wire, Long Term Evolution, known as 4G LTE Advanced, offered by all. other major wireless service providers. "

AT & T's true 5G network will come under the 5G + brand. It's confusing and it's going to get worse.

Sprint's 5G effort is different from Verizon or AT & T. Announced at the end of February, the operator intends to use the existing cellular spectrum to launch its 5G network more quickly at the expense of the speed of the network. This differs from other operators who will use a different spectrum, which will allow their networks to offer faster speeds, but at the expense of slower deployment.

There is a kind of arms race, but that makes little sense in the near future. The 5G promises to offer ultra-high speeds and ultra-low latency, allowing devices to take advantage of advanced technologies. But at launch, in 2019 and perhaps even in 2020, devices will simply have access to faster speeds and many users, which may not be enough to warrant an upgrade.

Disclosure: TechCrunch belongs to Verizon Media.

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