Vodafone to launch 5G in 12 more UK cities

Vodafone will launch 5G in a total of 19 towns and cities across the UK during 2019, it confirmed on Thursday, revealing 12 additional cities would benefit from the new technology when the network goes live later in the year.

The FTSE 100 telecoms conglomerate said the additional locations would join the seven cities that were already either live or switching on soon, under Vodafone’s UK-wide trial which began last year.

It claimed to be the first UK company to carry 5G traffic over a commercial mobile network in October from a location in Salford, with sites in Bristol, Cardiff and Liverpool now switched on and streaming live 5G mobile data traffic.

Meanwhile, the firm’s engineers had installed 5G antennas and associated equipment in Birmingham, Glasgow and London ahead of going live.

Vodafone said all of its mobile sites were connected to its nationwide optical fibre network, with connections giving speeds of up to 10 gigabits per second.

Alongside the seven cities already announced, it confirmed it would be launching 5G in Birkenhead, Blackpool, Bournemouth, Guildford, Portsmouth, Plymouth, Reading, Southampton, Stoke-on-Trent, Warrington and Wolverhampton this year.

It also said it would be launching 5G in Newbury - the original home of Vodafone, and the location of its technology headquarters.

In addition to live field trials, the company said it was also testing the performance of 5G smartphones, processors and routers in its Newbury technology headquarters using the most recent industry standards, which were approved in December.

That meant customers could be assured the service would work “seamlessly” when launched later in 2019, Vodafone claimed.

“Our multi-billion-pound network investment and leading position in setting global standards will ensure our customers have the very latest 5G releases and technology,” said Vodafone chief technology officer Scott Petty.

“5G will also usher in a new era where everyone and everything is better connected, whether you are running a hotel in Portsmouth or broadcasting live at MediaCity in Salford.”

In addition to the 12 new cities announced on Thursday, Vodafone explained that its investment in the latest ‘Active Antenna (Massive MIMO)’ technology meant a number of existing 4G sites were now ready for 5G installation.