AT&T to Launch Mobile 5G in 2018

[danDroid]

AT&T* expects to be the first U.S. company to introduce mobile 5G service in a dozen markets by late 2018. The promise of mobile 5G is seemingly endless and we’re moving fast to make that promise a reality.

To reach this ambitious milestone, we’ve taken a different approach to transforming our network. AT&T 5G services will be based on industry standards for 5G. To make this happen, we were one of the key drivers for standards acceleration last year.

Because of that acceleration, 3GPP, the international wireless standards body, completed key elements of 5G new radio (NR) standards last month. With these specifications now available, hardware, chipset and device manufacturers can start development. This allows us to provide mobile 5G services sooner. We’re confident this latest standards milestone will allow us to bring 5G to market faster without compromising its long-term vision.

“5G will change the way we live, work and enjoy entertainment,” said Melissa Arnoldi, president, AT&T Technology and Operations. “We’re moving quickly to begin deploying mobile 5G this year and start unlocking the future of connectivity for consumers and businesses. With faster speeds and ultra-low latency, 5G will ultimately deliver and enhance experiences like virtual reality, future driverless cars, immersive 4K video and more.”

In addition to plans for offering mobile 5G to consumers this year, we expect to trial 5G technology with businesses of all sizes across industries to help them to transform business operations and create more engaging experiences for their customers.

Taking 5G to the edge

As standards continue to develop, 5G will advance and won’t just be about faster speeds on your phone. It will also mean much lower latency, which will be enhanced by a new range of applications utilizing edge computing.

A quick primer: latency refers to how long it takes for the network to recognize you’ve requested a chunk of data and to start sending you that data. For example, it’s the brief delay between the moment you press play on a streaming video app and the moment the video shows up on your screen.

We expect future 5G technologies will eventually allow future driverless vehicles to make real-time decisions based on information that goes beyond the individual sensors onboard the vehicle itself. Vehicles will be able to “see” around corners, through other vehicles, and at longer distances. This will enable vehicles to quickly make sense of their environment and help guide safe operations on the road.

That’s what we mean about 5G unlocking a new level of experiences beyond just speed.

See the full press release @ AT&T to Launch Mobile 5G in 2018

 

[me just sayin]

only 12 cities in 2018???? I could have sworn there were more than 12 cities in the US I wonder what the prices will be...

 

[RETG]

From my perspective AT&T needs to expand their service areas in the western state to make them a viable alternative to Verizon. I tried AT&T two years ago for three months, and their coverage was terrible,. Had to switch back to Verizon to have any chance of coverage in the mountains.

 

[shockracer]

Verizon has been doing 5GTF testing in 11 different cities for almost a year now.

 

[me just sayin]

Verizon has been doing 5GTF testing in 11 different cities for almost a year now.

but is it real 5g