Windows Help & Advice - UK (2020-05)

THE CARRIERS

Howfardownthe5Groadeachofthemajorplayershastravelled

EE SKYMOBILE BTMOBILE

VODAFONE THREE O 2

With 50 UK cities and towns at least

partly covered by 5G so far, EE is doing a

commendable job in getting this super-fast

connectivity out to the people. By March

2020, the city number is expected to reach

70, with 5G stretching from Market Street on

Edinburgh’s Royal Mile, to Manchester’s Albert

Square, to Piccadilly Circus in London. EE has

a strong selection of 5G phones, with eight

handsets currently on offer at varying prices,

plus one SIM-only 5G plan that will set you

back £44 a month for 12 months.

Sky Mobile 5G has reached 20 different UK

towns and cities so far, including London,

Manchester, Belfast, Edinburgh and Cardiff. Sky

says more places will get 5G “soon”, though

it hasn’t gone into too much detail (perhaps

because it piggybacks on the O2 network).

The carrier sells four 5G phones with a contract

• three Samsung ones and a Huawei one – and
  its SIM-only plans are 5G-ready too (if you add
  a 5G phone as well, of course). 5G doesn’t cost
  anything extra on Sky Mobile, but you do need
  to sign up for its (free) VIP loyalty programme.

5G has been pushed out to 50 towns and

cities in the UK on BT Mobile so far, with more

expansion promised soon, though bear in

mind that it operates off the back of the EE

network. However, to get access to these 5G

speeds, you’ll need to have signed up to BT’s

super-fast Halo broadband service (starting

from £57.99 a month), and have signed up for

a 5G phone plan (you’ve got two Samsung

phones and one OnePlus handset to pick

from). All of the SIM-only plans on BT Mobile

will work with a 5G phone as well.

For the Vodafone network, the number of
5G locations in the UK is now up to 40, and
the carrier is talking about pushing that out
further in 2020 – it does have a good track
record of testing 5G hotspots in places like
airports and train stations. 5G won’t cost you
anything extra on your Vodafone plan, as
long as you’re paying for at least 5GB of data
every month (which you’re going to want if
you’re on 5G anyway). Its SIM-only plans are 5G
ready too, and Vodafone sells five different 5G
phones at the moment.

It’s fair to say Three is slightly behind the

curve when it comes to its 5G roll out, but

it does own more 5G spectrum in the UK

than anyone else, so when it does arrive, it

should be one of the fastest and biggest in

terms of capacity. Three has promised 25

locations will get 5G during the first quarter

of 2020, though it hasn’t been any more

specific than that, but it will already sell you

a 5G phone if you want one (three models

are available). Three’s SIM-only plans are

already 5G-ready at no extra cost.

For O2, 5G connectivity is live in 21 towns

and cities across the UK, and the network

operator has committed to pushing that

up to 50 by the time summer 2020 rolls

around (keep your eye on the O2 website

for progress on this). O2 currently has six

different 5G phones that it’ll sell you a

contract for, and if you’re going SIM-only

then you do need to buy a SIM that’s ready

for 5G rather than buying a standard package

• costs start at £25 a month over 18 months,
  and that’s with 100GB of data.

IMAGE SOURCE: GET TY: WAIT FOR LIGHT

Technology

The year of 5G

May 2020 | |^51