T-Mobile has begun rolling out its ultra-high-capacity 5G service, which can achieve speeds of up to 3.3Gbps using quad-carrier aggregation technology.
Simply put, the technology combines four different 5G channels into a single one for devices to use (IT note: only the Samsung Galaxy S23 series and X70-powered models like the OnePlus 11 seem to support it at the moment), which is even faster than the millimetre-wave (mmWave) 5G that Verizon and AT&T are touting.
Ookla recently reported that mmWave 5G download speeds in the US are currently up to 1.6Gbps, but mmWave 5G has limited range and device support, and is susceptible to common obstacles like trees and buildings.
The four channels used by T-Mobile include repurposed spectrum from T-Mobile and Sprint’s previously sealed 3G networks, including the 1900MHz channel, as well as two 2.5GHz channels and the 600MHz channel, according to the release.
According to a T-Mobile press release, the service is already live in some areas and “will be rolling out nationwide in the coming weeks,” but the carrier didn’t disclose specific locations.
In fact, AT&T and T-Mobile are working on similar upgrades, with AT&T saying earlier this year that it had aggregated two upload channels, while Verizon reported “upload speeds of more than 1 GB and download speeds of up to 4.3 Gbps in testing.”
But in any case, T-Mobile has been the first to commercialize it in the U.S. and has hit the 3Gbps throughput mark, something no other mobile carrier has been able to do.
Ulf Ewaldsson, T-Mobile’s president of technology, said that as the only (U.S.) company with an SA 5G network, “T-Mobile is the only provider bringing game-changing technologies such as quad-carrier aggregation to market.”
Publicly, T-Mobile rolled out 5G SA network coverage in November 2022, and it was the first U.S. carrier to achieve 3Gbps speeds via three-carrier aggregation. However, it wasn’t until the March 2023 release of iOS 16.4 that the Apple iPhone supported 5G SA networks.
