Last summer, U.S. carrier T-Mobile released the results of production network tests showing that 5G standalone (5G SA) can deliver speeds of up to 3Gbps when combined with carrier aggregation (NR CA). Now the operator has officially launched its “Standalone Ultra Capacity 5G” network service.
T-Mobile said it is taking its only U.S.-wide 5G standalone (5G SA) network to the next level, lighting up Ultra Capacity 5G on 5G SA nationwide, a move that will unleash faster speeds for customers across the country while further reducing lag in the network with lower latency and improving the experience of applications such as gaming that require near real-time response.
T-Mobile believes that 5G is having a “meaningful impact” on its customers when it comes to smartphones, home Internet and disaster response, “but we’ve only scratched the surface of 5G.
While T-Mobile claims high speeds of 3Gbps, don’t expect to experience these blazing speeds on 5G-enabled devices everywhere or on the network.
The boosted speeds from the 5G SA rollout will first apply to the Samsung Galaxy S22 line of phones, “and it will expand to other devices in the near future in the coming weeks.”
T-Mobile hasn’t shared specifics yet, and it remains to be seen how much of a performance boost is expected in real-world use beyond the maximum 3Gbps test speed. But T-Mobile will be the first carrier to deliver performance as fast or faster than 5G millimeter wave using mid-band spectrum.
