The Verizon 5G Ultra Wideband network was the first 5G technology service to launch globally. 

The network started rolling out 5G with Verizon 5G Home Internet (see below) at first, subsequently launching the first commercial 5G mobile network globally in April 2019. It's now live in more than 60 US cities, which isn't as many as you might expect given it was first to launch.  The network is committed to focus on 5G in the high-band mmWave spectrum (see below for more on this).

Then, Verizon has followed rivals T-Mobile and AT&T to launch nationwide low-band 5G (which doesn't provide much better speeds than 4G and uses dynamic spectrum sharing (DSS). This enables Verizon's 5G service to run simultaneously with 4G LTE on multiple spectrum bands.

Verizon says that customers are starting to move around more as 2021 moves on -mobile handoffs ) when a data session moves from one cell site to another) "have increased 28% since mid-January, and have increased 31% compared to last year at this same time."

Verizon took the lead for Everyday 5G data reliability in RootMetrics' recent 5G Scorecard where 65 locations were tested. By this metric, it was significantly ahead of both AT&T and Verizon. 

Verizon was very successful in the recent US C-Band auction and the company spent over $50 billion to secure between 140 and 200 Mhz of C-Band spectrum in every available market. C-Band is mid-band, which is currently the world's most popular for 5G. 

As a result Verizon says it expects to offer more 5G bandwidth to around 100 million people over the next 12 months.  Verizon believes it can cover more than 175 million people and by 2024, when the remaining C-Band is cleared, more than 250 million people are expected to have access to Verizon’s 5G Ultra Wideband.

C-band equipment is now currently being deployed across Verizon's network. As well as using Ericsson kit, Verizon will also use Samsung’s Massive MIMO radios. 

"We’re moving fast, with cooperation from our equipment partners, to have everything in place as soon as this C-band spectrum is cleared for use," said Kyle Malady, Verizon's chief technology officer. 

"This is a massive undertaking designed to add this game-changing capability as quickly as possible to the network our customers already rely on for consistent, superior performance when they need it most."

Verizon has also enabled its 5G service in 13 NFL stadiums including Bank of America Stadium, Empower Field at Mile High, CenturyLink Field, Ford Field, Gillette Stadium, Hard Rock Stadium, Lucas Oil Stadium, MetLife Stadium, M&T Bank Stadium, NRG Stadium, Soldier Field and U.S. Bank Stadium.

The Verizon 5G service will be available in selected areas of each stadium - the network says it is concentrated in parts of the seating area but service may be available in other areas. 

Verizon is also working with Zyter to improve fan health in stadia: Zyter ThermalAlert can automatically monitor the temperatures of fans as they walk into a venue. Check out how that works here: 

Verizon also teamed up with Wi-Fi provider Boingo to bring its 5G Ultra Wideband service indoors to places like airports, office buildings, stadiums and other public spaces. 

The network has also launched a partnership with Mastercard to working with the payments provider to explore how 5G can help develop payment technologies in the coming years. The idea is to make it frictionless for 5G enabled devices to accept payment, meaning things should be easier for both businesses and consumers. 

The network has a technology called Tap on Phone, which essentially enables compatible phones to be able to accept payment.

"Business needs and consumer demands constantly fluctuate," says Sampath Sowmyanarayan of Verizon Business. 

"Coupling Verizon’s leading global IP network and transformative 5G technology with Mastercard’s deep industry expertise, leading services and solutions, and a strong commitment to innovate, is a partnership that aligns perfectly with what we are striving to achieve at Verizon and one that can create game-changing solutions."

Verizon 5G cities

After criticism from users, media outlets and rivals, Verizon belatedly released coverage maps of all the cities it is currently offering 5G services in. 

T-Mobile originally made fun of Verizon's 5G rollout with a campaign targeting Verizon's limited rollout, concentrating on mmWave locations rather than a wider low-band rollout.

But Verizon is also now using lower band technology to bring a lower spec service to a wider audience. 

Verizon's mmWave network - known as 5G Ultra Wideband - is only available in selected areas of each city - so while speeds are great, coverage isn't as yet. 

More than 70 US locations have received Verizon 5G Ultra Wideband since the network launched. 

The latest launch of new locations for Ultra Wideband include Niagara Falls, along the Jersey Shore, Delaware Beaces and Ocean City, MD.

On the Jersey Shore: 5G Ultra Wideband coverage is available in Long Branch, downtown Asbury Park, Bradley Beach, Sea Girt, Manasquan, Long Beach, Margate City, Sea Isle City, Atlantic City, Long Branch Beach, Asbury Park Beach, Sea Girt Beach, Holgate, Brant beach, Spray beach, Bradley Cove, North Ocean City and more.

At the Delaware Beaches: 5G Ultra Wideband Coverage is available in Dewey Beach, Bethany Beach, South Bethany Beach, Fenwick Island and more. 

In Ocean City, MD:  5G Ultra Wideband is available in Butterfish Cove, the Coastal Highway, Pacific Avenue, Worcester Street, S. Philadelphia Ave., St Louis Avenue, N. Baltimore Avenue and more.

Veriozon says these airports are also now enabled for 5G Ultra Wideband: Chicago O’Hare, Columbus, San Antonio, Des Moines, Salt Lake City, Milwaukee, Dulles International, Chicago Midway International, McCarran International, Tampa International, Indianapolis International, Reagan International, John Wayne Airports and coming soon, Pittsburgh International Airport. 

Verizon's lower band offering is called 5G Nationwide. It uses dynamic spectrum sharing (DSS) meaning it can run alongside 4G LTE. Verizon says the service is currently available for more than 230 million people across 2,700 cities in the US.

There is a full guide to the areas covered in each US city at Verizon's 5G Ultra Wideband FAQ page - as we've mentioned elsewhere, coverage is patchy.

Verizon 5G phones

You’ll need to have a 5G phone to take advantage of 5G networks, of course. Verizon has devices from Apple, Samsung, LG, Google, Motorola, OnePlus, Nokia and TCL available currently for its network. 

Verizon is now offering new and existing customers free 5G phones with select plans when you trade in an older device - the 5G phone war is hotting up. In order to qualify, you will need to sign up for one of the three unlimited data plans that Verizon offers, costing from $70 to $80 per month or be an existing subscriber to one of those plans. You'll need to sign a 24 month deal. 

For example if you trade in iPhone 8 or Galaxy S8 or newer, you'll get the equivalent of $700 off a new iPhone or $800 off a new Android phone. And if you're moving from another provider you also get a $300 prepaid credit card to spend. 

Apple iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini

As well as the standard iPhone 12, there's also a new iPhone 12 mini and both are available on Verizon. The iPhone 12 series is Apple's first range of 5G phones. They use Qualcomm modems inside. The standard iPhone 12 is the pick of the entire series at 6.1-inches. Both iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini are available in Black, White, Red, Green and Blue.

Apple iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max

The iPhone 12 Pro is the same 6.1-inch size as the standard iPhone 12, but the Pro Max steps things up a gear to 6.7-inches, making it the largest-ever screen on an iPhone. It includes a few extra camera smarts over the other models and low light performance is quite remarkable. However, you've got to really want an extra camera lens to step up to the Pro, as well as the super-sized screen if you go as far as the Pro Max. 

Samsung Galaxy S21 5G

This year's S Series phone is one of the best we've ever seen, though Samsung's everyday flagship is no longer a rarity - the rest of the smartphone market has caught up. However, Samsung is still using pretty top-notch tech here, with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 platform in addition to a stunning 6.2-inch AMOLED display. The camera system is much improved from earlier versions, while the battery life is pretty great, too. 

Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra

The 6.8-inch S21 Ultra is huge and rather more expensive than its brother. It is definitely the best S21 if you can afford it, largely because of its five-camera setup which includes a 10x optical zoom, the best zoom of any phone camera. Like the standard S21 it runs on Qualcomm Snapdragon 888. It even has support for the S Pen, usually found on the Galaxy Note.

Google Pixel 5

The Pixel 5 is one of the best 5G Android phones available at present and will get all the new Android updates first, being an official Google phone. There's a 6-inch OLED display plus 128GB of storage and 8GB of memory plus a dual-lens camera system with 12.2 wide and 16 megapixel ultrawide lenses. The device - like other Pixel phones - is based on Qualcomm hardware. In this case it's the Snapdragon 765G.

Samsung Galaxy S20+

The standard S20 isn't available in the US - presumably, Samsung feels that last year's handsets can do a job there - so the torch has been given to the Galaxy S20+ to lead the way. Yes, there's the S20 Ultra, below, but not everybody wants a maxxed out phone with a 100x zoom. The S20+ has most of its smarts, with a 6.7-inch screen only slightly smaller. And it still has a quad-camera setup, too, complete with 3x hybrid zoom and super-resolution 30x zoom. 

Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra

Verizon is offering the range-topping S20 Ultra in both 128GB and 512GB versions in cosmic gray and black. The 6.9-inch S20 Ultra has an incredible 108 MP camera with a 100x zoom which, although not strictly necessary, produces some quite unbelievable results. The 3,200 x 1,440 display is a punchy OLED screen with fast 120 Hz refresh rate for brilliant results. What's more, it's capable of 8K video recording, too.

Verizon 5G coverage

Even though Verizon has rolled out mmWave 5G services in 60 cities so far, the coverage is hit-and-miss to say the least and it's concentrated in very specific areas for now. The network has now inked a $8.3 billion deal with Ericsson to expand Verizon's coverage including deploying network solutions across low-band, C-band and mmWave (millimeter wave). 

Verizon's 5G Ultra Wideband network - as it is calling it - uses the high-frequency mmWave technology also favoured by AT&T and T-Mobile. Of course, one of the big benefits of 5G is vastly reduced latency and increased speed, and it's here that you see the difference with mmWave.

In a comparison of 5G network speeds last year by Opensignal, Verizon took the top spot, beating the competition by some margin. Indeed, the Verizon 5G network has a peak speed of 390Mbps faster than the closest US network. 

Verizon's videos show speeds in excess of 1Gbps at times, although you should expect speeds in the low hundreds of Mbps as normal, faster in specific areas.  

Availability was another story. mmWave has a problem - while it's great for close-together cell sites in large cities, it's not so good for a rollout involving more rural areas where Verizon's 5G Nationwide service has to take a front seat. And mmWave services work mainly outdoors at the moment. We've even heard about being able to get 5G on one side of the street and not the other. 

To broaden the coverage of mmWave, Verizon is using signal repeaters from FRTek and SureCall. Such repeaters make complete sense since they are small, consume much less energy than a small cell, and they don’t require a fibre connection. 

Verizon officially won more spectrum in the 37GHz, 39GHz and 47GHz spectrum bands in the relevant FCC sale along with AT&T - between them the networks spent around $3 billion on the new spectrum. Spectrum is by far the most valuable commodity a network can own.  Verizon shelled out an impressive $1.624 billion for 4,940 licenses in total. This spectrum will be used to further enhance the rollout of mmWave services across the US, predominantly in cities. 

And now in early 2021 Verizon has spent $52.9 billion on doubling its existing mid-band spectrum holdings. "Since we began building 5G, we have had a first-mover advantage," said Hans Vestberg, Chairman and CEO of Verizon. "We are more than a year ahead in building and selling mmWave with our 5G Ultra Wideband service and still the only company with commercial Mobile Edge Compute. 

"Now we intend to extend our lead by accelerating our deployment of C-Band. Our new C-Band position combined with our mmWave, means we are the only carrier suited to deploy the fastest, most powerful 5G experience to the most people - or as we call it, 5G built right."

Verizon 5G deals

Verizon's Prepaid Unlimited plan now offers 5G Ultra Wideband and 5G Nationwide.

The $75/mo Unlimited plan includes 5G Nationwide and Ultra Wideband where available. 10GB of 5G Nationwide and 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot is included in that plan., 

The three other Unlimited tariffs are Play More Unlimited ($45/month), Do More Unlimited ($45/month) and Get More Unlimited ($55/month). 

The $35 Start Unlimited tariff is only available for 5G Nationwide rather than 5G Ultra Wideband. All the Unlimited tariffs include various perks such as free Disney+, Hulu and ESPN or free access to Apple Music. 

You can also purchase a premium entertainment option, including Apple Arcade, Google Play Pass, Apple Music, Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+ and Discovery+. 

You can get some of them for free with certain tariffs. 

Check out Verizon's Unlimited data plans

Verizon 5G Home Internet

Verizon 5G Home Internet is being offered in very limited areas for now but the Verizon provides its own 5G router, made by Wistron. Naturally, it is restricted to the areas that 5G service is available in.

The service is free for the first three months, after which it's $50 a month providing you have another current Verizon Wireless plan over $30. (If you don't have this, it's $70 per month).

Ronan Dunne - executive vice president of Verizon's consumer business - mentioned Verizon's 5G Home target of covering 30 million US households within 5-7 years. We've heard that main number before, but it's good to hear that is still the target. 

Verizon is being conservative with the duration of the target, primarily because the target market for 5G Home - those who live in suburban areas and other residential zones - aren't in locations where 5G networks are currently being built; most 5G rollout is taking place in dense urban areas.

Verizon 5G Business Internet is now available in parts of 42 US cities with more rollouts planned.

There's also a credit available to eligible customers of up to $1,500 to offset early-termination fees for switching from another Internet provider. The 5G Business Internet price is also fixed for 10 years according to the network. 

The service is now available in Ann Arbor, MI; Akron, OH; Fresno, CA; Spokane, WA; Columbia, SC; Milwaukee, WI; Tampa, FL; St. Petersburg, FL; Memphis, TN; San Antonio, TX; Columbus, OH; Raleigh, NC; Durham, NC; Greensboro, NC; Seattle, WA; Tucson, AZ; Des Moines, IA; and New Orleans, LA.

Check out Verizon 5G Home Internet

Verizon 5G business

Verizon is aggressively chasing small businesses with some 5G Business Unlimited plans as low as $30 per month.

Verizon says the 5G era is all about fast, clear connections between people and devices and that there are huge benefits for businesses ready to step onto the wagon. Indeed, Verizon says that 5G Ultra Wideband is "paving the way for a new era of business innovations with ultra-fast speeds with ultra-low lag time, so your business will be able to compete like never before".

Verizon has now signed its first deal to supply a private 5G network to Associated British Ports - and more specifically, the Port of Southampton. The project will use Nokia gear and run using Nokia's Digital Automation Cloud. 

“Verizon’s private 5G is the foundation for a completely dedicated edge compute infrastructure, enabling ultra-low latency at the premise, higher levels of security and deeper customization for our partners,” said Tami Erwin, CEO at Verizon Business. 

“Businesses such as ABP are coming under more pressure to evolve their services at tremendous speeds in order to take advantage of new commercial opportunities. Along with Nokia, we have been able to equip ABP to take advantage of the immediate benefits private 5G offers, and most importantly prepare the Port of Southampton to take full advantage of new technology applications and real-time analytics which will digitally transform its services in the future.”

In the US, Verizon has followed up its deal in the UK with a private 5G network product called On Site 5G. For enterprises and the private sector, On Site 5G uses 5G Ultra Wideband as a private network regardless of whether the area in question has a public 5G network.  The network can also work alongside 4G LTE if required and can integrate with the organisation's other networks. 

Because user and device access is controlled, the network can offer the privacy of on-premises networking. 

“On Site 5G opens the commercial floodgates for the promises of 5G Ultra Wideband, allowing large enterprises and public sector organizations to custom tailor a 5G experience for any premises that demands it,” said Sampath Sowmyanarayan, Chief Revenue Officer of Verizon Business. 

“It’s the bespoke business service for what we do better than anyone else: build 5G networks that enable even the most advanced wireless, MEC, and IoT capabilities for customers on the cutting edge.”

Verizon Business has also partnered with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to deliver private mobile edge computing (MEC) to enterprise customers. Customers will be able to deploy a completely dedicated edge compute infrastructure on-premises, with ultra-low latency, higher levels of security and deeper customisation.

We also recently spoke to Maggie Hallbach - vice president of business development and strategic sales for the public sector at Verizon abut how 5G is changing things there, especially in terms of healthcare.

"5G will be a game-changer for healthcare – revolutionizing the way doctors train, prepare for and perform surgery and give patients access to the best specialists regardless of where they live. 5G speed, massive bandwidth and low latency will allow healthcare professionals to access a wealth of data - in near real-time. 

"Last year, Verizon lit up the first 5G enabled hospital at the VA hospital located in Palo Alto, CA. By leveraging Verizon’s 5G Ultra Wideband network, the VA is using Medivis’ imaging software and Microsoft’s HoloLens to help doctors prepare for surgery and train medical students while enhancing the quality of care for veterans through telemedicine. 

"Using 5G and Medivis’ solution, MRI scans can be transformed into rich, holographic images that radiologists can reference in near-real-time and even project onto the patient to better guide procedures." 

Verizon is also in talks with Walmart to install a 5G-based healthcare system in-store. The service would enable customer data to flow between the store and a clinic so customers can pick up the medical supplies they need. 

Verizon is also co-operating with other big network names globally including Telstra and Vodafone on a 5G specification group called the 5G Future Forum. The goal is to provide standardised practices so that businesses can rely on. The mission is defined as aiming to "accelerate the delivery of 5G and mobile edge computing" globally. 

According to Ericsson's This is 5G report (PDF), speed and lower latency are among the key 5g attributes that will bring new opportunities to business as Verizon's network rolls out. 

For Verizon, the benefit of having real-world use cases for its 5G service are clear, while Walmart will be able to become the default choice for medical supplies for some customers.

Check out what Verizon 5G can offer your business

AT&T's senior vice president Chris Penrose describes the company's 5G network as a chocolate chip cookie. The main cookie dough represents low-band 5G while the chocolate chips represent the 5G+ millimeter-wave cities "sprinkled in across the country."

Much of AT&T's coverage is known as 5G Nationwide. Initially, the network said 5G Nationwide wouldn't offer 5G speeds much beyond 4G - that's because this broadest  5G network is based on low-band signals. 

The faster high-band mmWave (millimeter wave) technology is also rolling out as well, so speeds will be a lot higher - we've gone into a bit more detail about the kinds of speeds to expect below. This faster network is called 5G+ by AT&T. 

So while the network is getting better all the time, it seems AT&T would rather market Nationwide 5G rather than 5G+ for now. 

But as we mentioned mid-band networks do form a large chunk of the cookie. Like Verizon, AT&T is counting on C-Band spectrum to catch up with T-Mobile and it plans to build out capacity for the first 40Mhz of that spectrum this year with more to follow over the next three years. It's working with Nokia as part of a five year deal between the two companies to boost indoor and outdoor 5G coverage. 

“AT&T is committed to bringing the power of 5G to businesses and communities across the nation, and our C-Band deployments with Nokia will help add 5G capacity where it’s needed,” said Igal Elbaz, Senior Vice President of Wireless and Access Technology AT&T.

Mid 2021 is also a time of change at AT&T from a corporate sense as it works with Discovery to combine WarnerMedia's entertainment, sports and news properties with those of Discovery, placing HBO and Discovery+ under one roof with Eurosport, Warner Bros, Cartoon Network and CNN all in the mix. AT&T’s shareholders will receive stock representing 71% of the new company. 

Crucially, AT&T will receive new funds from the transaction to invest in its new 5G network. In a shareholder note, AT&T Chief Executive Officer John Stankey said:  "Following close of the WarnerMedia Discovery transaction, AT&T will have the financial flexibility to boost investment to historically high levels that are also significantly above its competitors’ planned investments."

"AT&T’s expected capital expenditures of around $24 billion per year from 2022 to 2024 builds on its existing position as one of the largest investors in digital infrastructure and connectivity in the United States. 

"This investment will allow AT&T to meet substantial, long-term demand for connectivity... and expectations for its 5G C-band network to cover 200 million people in the U.S. by year-end 2023."

Speed and performance

A RootMetrics network performance study from April 2021 suggests AT&T has superior 5G download speeds and reliability to other US networks, while T-Mobile has the best 5G network availability. The study rated the three big players across 45 US cities and that breadth is reflected in the result here. 

"AT&T led the competition, delivering a combination of the fastest worst-case, median, and best-case 5G download speeds together in 14 cities," said the report. "T-Mobile registered the fastest speeds across all three metrics in six markets, while Verizon did so in three cities."

AT&T has also been working with Facebook Reality Labs to use 5G for augmented reality (AR) apps to show how the faster load times, better reliability and more vivid graphics can bring AR more to life on mobile devices. The companies are exploring how custom content can be created for places such as arenas that can be shared by their visitors on video calls. 

What is 5GE?

As we mentioned, AT&T originally prioritised 5GE for customers back in 2019. 5GE stands for 5G Evolution. It is available in over 500 US towns and cities. 

The approach here still makes sense. Many consumers still aren't ready for full 5G networks yet, so why not give them a better service in the meantime before they're eventually convinced to go for a full 5G or 5G+ service?

The problem is that 5GE could be seen as misleading - it's certainly pure marketing, any way you look at it. Other networks aren't keen and Sprint even took out a full-page advertisement in the New York Times to say that "AT&T's fake 5G claims are deceiving consumers". Analyst OpenSignal has even suggested that AT&T LTE is often slower than other networks with LTE Advanced. 

The issue is that 5GE is not really 5G at all - it's known as LTE Advanced from other vendors so, yes, it's still 4G.

AT&T 5G cities

AT&T's main 5G network - Nationwide 5G - is a low band network which is now available in more than 14,000 towns and cities across the US. AT&T is simply referring to this network as "5G" rather than 5GE or 5G+ (see below).

AT&T's faster millimeter wave 5G+ network is available today in limited parts of at least 35 cities. As with other networks using millimeter wave, speeds on this network will reach in excess of 1Gbps. 

These locations include Atlanta, Austin, Charlotte, Dallas, Houston, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Louisville, Nashville, New Orleans, New York City, Oklahoma City, Orlando, Raleigh, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose and Waco. 

AT&T Stadium - home of the Dallas Cowboys - has also been 5G-enabled. 

AT&T 5G phones

AT&T's 5G phone rollout was initially very slow. The Samsung Galaxy S10 5G was available in early 2019 for business users and took a long time to become available for consumers. Since early 2020 (with the Galaxy S20 series) things took off and the network's 5G phone has since grown significantly. 

Samsung Galaxy S21 5G

With the octacore Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 platform at its core, the 6.2-inch Galaxy S21 is a superb flagship phone with excellent triple cameras - much improved over recent Samsung offerings - plus great battery life and a wonderful AMOLED display. It's dust and water resistant and available with 128 or 256GB of storage. 

Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra

With a five-camera setup that includes a 10x optical zoom, there's enough here to justify the price premium over the standard Galaxy S21. It's around half an inch bigger than the other model at 6.8-inches. And, like the other phone it runs on the very powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 platform. It is expensive, however.

Apple iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini

The iPhone 12 series is Apple's first range of 5G phones - these use Qualcomm modems inside. The pick of the entire range is the standard new 6.1-inch iPhone 12. This device makes the step up to the more expensive iPhone 12 Pro unnecessary.  There's now a new 5.4-inch iPhone 12 mini too. Both iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini are available in Black, White, Red, Green and Blue.

Apple iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max

iPhone 12 Pro is the same 6.1-inch size as the really rather good standard iPhone 12, but the Pro Max supersizes this to 6.7-inches - the largest-ever screen on an iPhone. The Pro Max includes a few extra camera smarts over the other models and low light performance is quite remarkable. However, you've got to really want an extra camera lens to step up to the Pro from the iPhone 12 as it doesn't really offer anything else. 

Google Pixel 5

Google's Pixel 5 features a 6-inch OLED display plus the very latest Android operating system plus Qualcomm's bleeding-edge Snapdragon 765G hardware. There's also a  that's punchy and bright. You also get 128GB of storage, 8GB of memory and a dual camera featuring 12.2 wide and 16 megapixel ultrawide lenses. As it's a Google phone you'll get all the latest Android updates, too. 

Samsung Galaxy S20 5G

We didn't actually think the Samsung Galaxy S20 was coming to the US, but were proven wrong by AT&T choosing to offer it. It's available in cloud pink, cloud blue and cosmic grey in a 128GB version only. 

With a 6.2-inch OLED display it's not a small phone, although is more pocketable than the others in the range. There'a s triple camera with 30x zoom (the main lens is a whopping 64 megapixels) and it can record 8K video should you really wish to. 

Samsung Galaxy S20+

The S20+ carries over many of the features from the standard S20 but you get a quad-camera instead, again with 64 megapixel telephoto lens and 12MP ultra-wide cameras. The screen is half an inch bigger though at 6.7-inches. 

Once again the phone is based around the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 platform with a Qualcomm X55 5G modem. 

It's available in two storage sizes  - 128 and 512GB - and in three colours, cloud blue cosmic black and cosmic grey. 

Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra

The Galaxy S20 Ultra is a flagship phone in every sense. It's significantly more expensive than, say, the standard S20 and, while it has a lot in common with the S20+, it improves on the middle phone of the range quite significantly as well. 

It's 0.2-inches bigger than the S20+, clocking in just shy of 7-inches at 6.9 and the 3,200 x 1,440 AMOLED display;ay absolutely sings. Like the others in the range it has super-fast charging and is based around the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 platform with X55 modem. 

But the real change is in the camera department. You get a quad-camera just like the S20+ but instead things are pushed to the limit. Instead of a 30x zoom, the S20 Ultra is capable of 100x, while there's a huge 108 megapixel sensor to go alongside a 48 megapixel telephoto. While the 100x zoom isn't hugely practical, you'll love zooming into far-off objects. 

Again it's available in two storage sizes - 128 and 512GB - but only two rather dark colours, cosmic black and cosmic grey.

AT&T 5G coverage

AT&T is working with Nokia to roll out C-Band spectrum (mid-range spectrum) over the coming years and has signed a five-year deal. Nokia’s US C-Band portfolio includes support for both standalone 5G networks and non-standalone networks., 

“Nokia is ready to support the launch of 5G services into this valuable new spectrum on our customers’ timelines by leveraging our powerful portfolio of C-Band solutions and by being the first to demonstrate a live C-Band network in the U.S. in 2020. Our flexible and comprehensive portfolio will enable AT&T to enhance its 5G services in areas across the nation,” said Ed Cholerton, President of Nokia North America.

Like other networks, AT&T reported a massive upsurge in traffic around the coronavirus outbreak, largely driven by home working. AT&T also announced it would relax data caps during the outbreak. 

AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson told CNN’s Brian Stelter on the Reliable Sources programme that: "We’re seeing some signs of stress. We’re having to go out and do some of augmentation of network but right now the network is performing quite well.” Although he didn't go into details, 'augmentation' probably means opening up additional capacity.

Stephenson added that the network would “come out of this crisis" before saying it would also "continue to invest in 5G and new technology."

Interestingly, the AT&T CEO added that the pandemic will cause all organisations to reevaluate how they run things. "I think it’s going to cause every business to evaluate how [they] do business", clearly intending to include AT&T within that. 

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has introduced a Keep Americans Connected pledge for networks and other organisations with the intention that they won't overcharge consumers and make hay from the coronavirus outbreak. 

AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon and other big players like Comcast have already committed to the pledge which is aimed at ensuring that they don't terminate service for people who may not be able to pay and forgo late fees. The intention is also to open up public Wi-Fi hotspots. 

In its statement on the development, AT&T says it "will not terminate the service of any wireless, home phone or broadband residential or small business customer because of their inability to pay their bill due to disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic."

AT&T has also put forward $10 million to create a Distance Learning and Family Connections Fund with the intention to better connect students and teachers for distance learning during the next few months. Around $1 million will be going to online learning platform Khan Academy, which is a renowned source of educational materials. Sal Khan, founder and CEO of Khan Academy said of the donation: "We’re grateful that they’re helping us respond quickly to school closures so everyone can keep learning at home.”

Check out AT&T's coverage map

AT&T 5G deals

5G Nationwide is available on the AT&T Unlimited Extra and AT&T Unlimited Elite plans. 

AT&T Unlimited Elite will give you included HBO streaming for $85 a month per line or $50 a month per line if you have four lines on the same plan.

The network says that customers who subscribe to HBO, including those who receive it as part of our current and future postpaid wireless plans, will be able to get HBO Max - the network's new streaming service - at no extra charge. What's more, all the included streaming is now available in 4K Ultra HD resolution where available. 

And the network has also now announced that Unlimited Elite customers have access to Unlimited high speed data over 5G at no extra cost - another sign the 5G price and plan war is hotting up in the States (that includes existing customers, too). AT&T is also increasing the mobile hotspot data available to 40GB, an increase of 10GB. 

According to some small print it seems that there is a potential of throttled speeds if users go over 100GB per month, but in reality that is likely to only affect a few users. 

AT&T Unlimited Extra customers have 5G service included, as well as 15GB of mobile hotspot data per line for $75 a month per line. This means that users could have data speeds throttled if they go over 50GB per month.

Finally, Unlimited Starter costs $65 a month but you will find your 5G speeds restricted any time you're in a congested area. 

AT&T also offers its own Mobile Security app to enable ActiveArmor advanced security features like identity monitoring and safe browsing.

AT&T 5G business and home internet

Unlike Verizon's 5G Home Internet and similar offerings, AT&T doesn't have a 5G home or business broadband offering as yet. However, the company has talked about having it in future.

The network is offering the Netgear Nighthawk 5G Mobile hotspot, which is compatible with mmWave (5G+) and uses Qualcomm's X50 5G modem. 

AT&T 5G for business

AT&T says that 5G will "ultimately unlock use cases that are dependent on faster speed, wide coverage, and low latency". In other words, you'll be able to take the ultrafast connectivity you have in your home or business with you onto the street. 

And, as we know this will create better experiences for customers and businesses as the 5G network spreads to more devices and industries - with the key benefit that you're better able to better serve the customer. 

AT&T carried out a trial with Magnolia Silos in Waco, that provided an insight into how 5G can change retail, using 5G speeds of approximately 1.2 Gbps in a 400 MHz channel and latency of just 9-12 milliseconds.

“Businesses are leading the charge on the nation’s first mobile 5G network, and this is the next step in unlocking 5G’s full potential for those early adopters and innovators,” said Mo Katibeh, Chief Marketing Officer, AT&T Business. 

“With mobile 5G a core tenet of our 5G strategy for businesses, we’re making this amazing new device available so that the business community can begin creating new experiences and drive the next industrial revolution through unprecedented mobile capabilities.”

AT&T is also trialling a dedicated fleet of 100+ land-based and airborne portable cell sites to provide law enforcement and fire services with connectivity when they need it most. 

AT&T recently decided to abandon its Network Cloud technology and move its 5G systems to Microsoft Azure, starting with the 5G core but with other systems to follow.

“AT&T has one of the world’s most powerful global backbone networks serving hundreds of millions of subscribers. Our Network Cloud team has proved that running a network in the cloud drives speed, security, cost improvements and innovation. Microsoft’s decision to acquire these assets is a testament to AT&T’s leadership in network virtualisation, culture of innovation, and realisation of a telco-grade cloud stack,” said Andre Fuetsch, executive vice president and chief technology officer, AT&T. 

“The next step is making this capability accessible to operators around the world and ensuring it has the resources behind it to continue to evolve and improve. And do it securely. Microsoft’s cloud expertise and global reach make them the perfect fit for this next phase.”

Check out AT&T for business

T-Mobile 5G is rolling out now across the US and is taking advantage of different versions of 5G technology to help it improve coverage and capacity. 

Similar to AT&T, T-Mobile has also rolled out a lot of low-band 5G, which isn't great for speeds. That so-called 5G Extended Range network was started in 2019 and is essentially 4G with a few enhancements to make it quicker. T-Mobile rightly calls it a "foundational layer of its 5G network" and while that's true, it's not really full 5G. 

It does have the benefit of huge coverage though, cover more than 200 million people and more than 1 million square miles across the US - over 8,000 cities. 

One thing's for sure - T-Mobile is gaining customers at some speed. Figures from the fourth quarter of 2019 point towards a million 'postpaid' customers; people who pay a monthly bill. 77,000 pay-as-you-go or prepaid customers were also added over the period. 

T-Mobile remains the third biggest network in the US, despite it having absorbed the Sprint network in a protracted deal that closed during early 2020. After the acquisition, it has just over 100 million subscribers across the US. 

According to the network, it has added 53 million users since 2013. Not surprising when you have had 27 successive quarters with over a million new users added.

Among the 5G test projects that T-Mobile has carried out, the network has been using 5G-embedded cameras to virtually put fans on the baseball field in order to catch the action from the players’ point of view and go behind the scenes. They're mounted on players hats and catchers masks - T-Mobile says this is the first time that 5G embeddable cameras have been integrated into a professional sports league event. Each camera features a real-time HD stream. 

T-Mobile has also worked with Major League Baseball to create an augmented reality app for fans with bonus stat views for T-Mobile 5G customers. 

In a measure of how T-Mobile sees itself, CEO Mike Sievert will deliver the keynote at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in January 2022.

Gary Shapiro, president and CEO, CTA: "The pace of innovation has accelerated over the last 18 months, and the rapid roll-out of 5G will only increase the momentum. There’s so much excitement in this space and for the first time, we welcome Mike Sievert to our keynote stage to share more about T-Mobile’s vision for fuelling 5G innovation."

Speed and reliability

In May 2021, RootMetrics released its first-ever 5G Scorecard, which shows the race between the US’s 5G networks. Although AT&T was best for Everyday 5G download speeds, T-Mobile offers the broadest Everyday 5G availability of any carrier according to the tests. RootMetrics tested the 125 most populated metropolitan markets in the US. 

T-Mobile holds a significant lead in the race for Everyday 5G availability, according to RootMetrics, recording the highest Everyday 5G availability in 44 out of 65 total cities tested to date.

T-Mobile was also recently been hailed as the most reliable 5G network in the US according to consultancy Umlaut. The network had the best overall score of the US networks with an overall 707 points out of a maximum of 1000. The tests were carried out using the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra. 

In a clear ranking of how the network rollout is panning out, Verizon scored second overall with 632 points with AT&T bringing up the rear with 599 points. 

In terms of reliability, T-Mobile also achieved the highest score with 664 out of a maximum of 800 points. In contrast, Verizon ranked second with 560 points and again AT&T was third with 520 points.

"umlaut’s report is just the latest to prove customers and businesses alike can count on T-Mobile 5G to deliver a fast and reliable 5G connection in more places than anyone else," said T-Mobile's Neville Ray. 

"While the other networks play catch up, we’ll keep adding more 5G coverage and capacity to bring a transformative experience to customers across the country."

Ookla also recently rated the network as the fastest 5G network in the US. The testing - carried out during the first quarter of 2021 - saw the network clock 82.35Mbps download speeds, followed by AT&T at 76.6Mbps and Verizon with 67.24Mbps. Ookla’s study also found that T-Mobile customers spent more time connected to a 5G network, than customers on rival 5G networks.

T-Mobile 5G cities

The 5G Extended Range network covers 8,300 US towns and cities. It is still be able to get to speeds of around 450Mbps if conditions are at their best, although expect significantly slower speeds than that generally. Essentially, it is like a quicker form of 4G LTE.

T-Mobile's Ultra Capacity network is different. It's a millimeter wave (mmWave) network similar to that which we've seen from the other US providers - but not providers in Europe. It provides the fastest speeds, but has poor range. T-Mobile says it is upgrading 1,000 cell towers a month for this, covering 100 million Americans. However, it is really only in some areas of the very largest cities at present. 

Check out the T-Mobile coverage in your area

T-Mobile 5G phones

T-Mobile originally offered the Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ and the OnePlus 5G before launching the OnePlus 7T Pro 5G McLaren on an exclusive in the US. 

Like most other networks offering 5G globally, T-Mobile has now added the Samsung Galaxy S20, S21 and iPhone 12 to its roster in 2020/21. 

Apple iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini

The whole iPhone 12 range comes with the latest A14 Bionic platform so there's no performance limitation for going for one of these 6.1-inch or 5.4-inch handsets (the Pro has more RAM though). Both the iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini are available in Black, White, Red, Green, Blue.

The standard iPhone 12 is our pick of the iPhone 12 range.

Apple iPhone 12 Pro and Pro Max

The 6.1-inch iPhone 12 Pro doesn't do enough to distinguish itself from the same-sized  iPhone 12.

However, the Pro Max certainly does with its huge 6.7-inch display and sheer desirability. The cameras are among the best we've seen, especially in low light. It's eye-wateringly expensive, though. 

Google Pixel 4a 5G

While Google's best 5G phone is the Pixel 5 (not currently available on T-Mobile), the Pixel 4a 5G is certainly much more affordable. Not to be confused with the standard Pixel 4a, the 5G version is based around the powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G chipset and features a large 6.2-inch OLED display. There's a dual-camera setup with 12.2 megapixel wide and 16 megapixel ultrawide camera sensors and you'll get 128GB of storage and 6GB of memory, too. And, naturally being a Google phone, you're guaranteed of the latest Android updates. 

Samsung Galaxy S21 5G

Samsung's latest S Series phone is a hugely impressive 6.2-inch handset. It may longer be the only tech king in town, but it's still using bran new tech inside, with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 platform at its core. We like the triple cameras which are much better - particularly with low light - than earlier models. It also has decent battery life, too. 

Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra

At over half an inch bigger than the standard model, the 6.8-inch S21 Ultra is a luxury phone. The camera system just about makes it worth it if you want the best, with a five-camera setup that includes a 10x optical zoom. Like the standard S21 it runs on Qualcomm Snapdragon 888. There's even support for the S Pen stylus, too, should you want that. 

Samsung Galaxy S20 5G

Capable of 8K video recording and with a large  6.2-inch AMOLED display, the standard S20 is no slouch, powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 platform for the US market. Like the others in the range, it has super-fast charging, too. 

Available in cloud pink, cloud blue and cosmic grey, it's only around in a 128GB version only. 

There's a triple camera (not quad like the other S20s) and it has a 64 megapixel main sensor. It's also got a 30x digital zoom, too. 

Samsung Galaxy S20+

The 6.7-inch S20+ is available in three colours - cloud blue, cosmic black and cosmic grey - and adds an extra storage size to the standard S20 in the form of 512GB in addition to 128GB. 

Again it offers a 64 megapixel telephoto lens and 12MP ultra-wide camera setup, but the S20+ (and Ultra) offer quad-camera arrangements. 

The price premium for the S20+ is not extensive over the standard S20 and as such is worth considering. 

Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra

Slightly bigger - by 0.2-inches than the S20+ - the S20 Ultra clocks in at 6.9-inches and features an upgraded camera.

Storage capacities are the same as the S20+ at 128 and 512GB. However, the Ultra is only available in cosmic black or cosmic grey.

So what's better about the camera? Firstly there's the zoom - the S20 Ultra is capable of 100x (rather than 30x) while there's an extremely large 108 megapixel camera sensor to go alongside a 48 megapixel telephoto lens. 

You won't find the 100x zoom that practical, but using it is fun. 

T-Mobile 5G coverage

For its 5G Ultra Capacity network, T-Mobile is using 28 Ghz mmWave (millimetre wave), just as Verizon is. That means excellent download speeds, but a more difficult blanket rollout. That's because the shorter wavelength signals don't travel so far and are easily blocked in urban areas or by external walls - so you need loads of 5G nodes. 

You only need to look at T-Mobile's current coverage maps to show the issues around mmWave deployment - it's extremely patchy. 

So as we mentioned, T-Mobile has also opted to use low-band 600Mhz spectrum. The low-band spectrum can also carry 5G signals inside. 

Before the T-Mobile launch of low-band 5G, Sprint was leading the way with low-band and it's one of the reasons that Sprint and T-Mobile felt they would be a good fit by merging, which they duly did.

T-Mobile 5G deals

In terms of SIM-only, T-Mobile 5G offers service plans at $15 for 2GB (not enough, in our opinion), and $25 for 5GB. The plans also offer 100GB of free monthly home internet to 10 million American families. And if that wasn’t enough, the company also gives free wireless service to every first responder in America. 

Currently, Samsung Galaxy S20 5G is available on T-Mobile from $31.25 a month on a 24-month deal providing you put $349.99 down plus tax. You can also buy it outright from the network for $1,099.

Magenta Max is a new plan specifically made for a 5G world - it won't slow down based on how much data you use. T-Mobile says that nearly 50% of Magenta MAX customers use a 5G smartphone, and they use noticably more data – 43% more music, 48% more video and 26% more social media. 

The network says that "on average these customers on average have each listened to the equivalent of 360 more songs, watched 576 more minutes of video and made 1,512 more posts on social media than our other customers."

T-Mobile 5G business and home internet

T-Mobile Business has announced three new plans as of early 2021. The three plans are: ‘Enterprise Unlimited’ plans, a set of business mobile tariffs to offer 5G with “unprecedented value”; ‘Home Office Internet’, providing a dedicated connection for business use; and ‘Collaborate’, which is a suite of mobile-first, cloud-based apps. 

"Today we’re unveiling a comprehensive set of T-Mobile for Business solution, unlocked by our 5G network, to solve real problems, and empower business to do business whenever, and wherever they need to, and we’re calling it T-Mobile WFX, and it includes three key solutions to help businesses work from anywhere, says T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert.

T-Mobile Home Office Internet covers more than 60 million households at launch, close to half of all homes in America, with plans to cover more than 90 million households by 2025. And T-Mobile’s new Collaborate service will be available as part of ‘Enterprise Unlimited’, or on a standalone basis.

Pricing for T-Mobile Home Office Internet starts at $90 per line per month, and Enterprise Unlimited with T-Mobile Collaborate together start at $37 per line, per month; with T-Mobile available as a standalone product from $12 per month. 

T-Mobile's Home Internet covers 30 million homes at present for $60 a month. "I’m proud to announce that we're launching T-Mobile Home Internet," said Mike Sievert, T-Mobile CEO at the launch of the service in April 2021. 

"More than 30 million homes are now eligible. That's almost  one in five American households available today. And that makes T-Mobile one of America's largest ISPs by service area - Verizon says they won't even reach that many homes in their fixed 5G  wireless for nearly two more years.”

T-Mobile 5G for business

Like the other big US networks, T-Mobile sees big opportunities for businesses willing to invest in 5G, especially around the internet of things and remote connectivity. 

In May 2021 T-Mobile for Business announced new small business rate plans and fixed wireless internet for small businesses. These plans feature unlimited talk, text, and data plus high-speed mobile hotspot data with every plan, more Premium Data and an option for unlimited in-flight Wi-Fi. Some plans also include Microsoft 365 subscriptions, too. 

Like other networks, T-Mobile has its fair share of test bed tech. The latest is a driverless car service in Las Vegas powered by T-Mobile 5G. Yep, no driver - Halo began driving on Las Vegas public highways earlier this year - you simply summon a vehicle using a mobile the app. 

The car picks you up, drops you off and carries on to its next destination. However, while it is driverless, it is not fully autonomous; the vehicles use proprietary RemotePilot tech where drivers remotely operate the vehicle over the 5G network. The car will come to a safe stop if a hazard is detected while the vehicles are learning using AI in order to work towards eventual Level 3 autonomy. 

According to an early 2021 report by Accenture, the pandemic has changed the way people work and socialize, with 79% of respondents wanting to work from a “third space” – a location other than their home or workplace.

T-Mobile also collaborates with universities and standards bodies to support 5G technology research and development, operating the T-Mobile Accelerator, T-Mobile Ventures investment fund. It's also a co-founder of the 5G Open Innovation Lab.

Meanwhile, 87% of enterprises expect their employees to work from home three or more days per week - tomorrow's office is pretty much anywhere. 

Check out T-Mobile for business

EE 5G was the first to launch in the UK, with the UK's second-biggest network clearly intent on being in the box seat for customers wondering what network to choose.

BT now owns EE, of course, and BT Mobile is actually an MVNO working on EE's network. As part of this, BT has also launched a combined 5G mobile and home broadband plan called BT Halo which offers unlimited data and calls on mobile and at home, something also offered by Vodafone Together.  BT has also launched Hybrid Broadband, normal fibre which is backed up by cellular, but this is 4G not 5G at present. 

Although EE wasn't pleased by its share of 5G spectrum in the first Ofcom 5G auction (40Mhz in the 3.4Ghz band), Ofcom's 2021 auction has been a success for EE - to won 2x10 MHz of paired frequency spectrum in the 700 MHz band at a cost of £280,000,000; 20 MHz of supplementary downlink spectrum in the 700MHz band at a cost of £4,000,000; and 40 MHz in the 3.6-3.8 GHz band at a cost of £168,000,000. That's a combined outlay of around £450 million.

EE has now stated that it aims to have 5G across at least 90 percent of the UK by 2028 (measured by landmass) and it will do this by combining low band spectrum into the mix. That's the 700Mhz allocation we've talked about above. 

Indeed, it has already begun to roll this out. The network is set to launch its new 5G core network in 2023 at which point EE says that its 5G network will cover around half of the UK's population. 

EE has form for using big-name music stars to promote 5G - it held a gig with Stormzy on the River Thames to promote the launch of its 5G network and, of course, EE also sponsors the Glastonbury Festival each year. 

EE also streamed a 360-degree augmented reality (AR) Bastille concert from Birmingham New Street station to Edinburgh and Liverpool. Members of the public in the latter two cities could watch the gig on devices provided by EE reps including the Samsung Galaxy Fold 5G and some AR glasses. AR visuals surrounded the band, adding to the experience.

And recently, EE used the Galaxy S21 and its 5G installation at Wembley Stadium to stage the world's first 5G AR Foosball tournament between Gareth Southgate and other well-lnown football figures. 

EE has also just launched an ad showing a slightly over-the-top depiction of what's capable with 5G, shaving Lucifer actor Tom Ellis being shaved by a robotic arm on top of Mount Snowdon. The catch is the arm is being controlled by a barber 250 miles away in London, who just happens to be joined by EE ad regular Kevin Bacon. The ad is designed to showcase a situation where you'd be in a bad way if your network let you down... Here's the ad: 

Once again EE has been named as the UK's top network in independent tests by RootMetrics. The UK-wide aggregate median download speed was over twice as fast as that of any other UK network at 58.8Mbps. 

However, what's more interesting for us here is 5G performance. Here EE took top spot in RootMetrics Everyday 5G rating. This is basically a rating based on availability plus speed and reliability. 

The network's highest availability is in Birmingham, where it covers just shy of 65 percent of the city. 

EE 5G cities and towns

EE has 5G service in 160 UK towns and cities currently. That's not as many as some other networks, though BT/EE consumer chief Marc Allera says that other networks don't have the same level of coverage when they 'claim' a new location has 5G. 

"When EE announces it has switched on a new place with 5G, there must be meaningful levels of coverage there, which we assess with clear benchmarks and strict criteria which need to be met. 

"We could loosen our criteria like some competitors; to be honest, it’s tempting, by so doing we would reveal 5G is actually in around 200 unique locations across the UK. However, we believe our claims should be as credible as our 5G is usable. We do not take our customers’ experience for granted." 

The latest major switch on in April 2021 saw 35 new locations added. The latest places include tourist landmarks such as Brighton Pier, York Minster, Swansea Bay and Sandbanks Beach.

Recently-enabled towns and cities are: Aldridge, Alexandria, Aylesbury, Ayr, Barnsley, Biggleswade, Blackburn, Bolton, Brighton. Chester, Colchester, Dundee, Exeter, Grantham, Gravesend, Harrogate, Lincoln, Milton Keynes, Norwich, Paignton, Poole, Portsmouth, Rickmansworth, Runcorn, Southport, Stockton-on-Tees, Stoke-on-Trent, Stratford-upon-Avon, Sunbury-on-Thames, Swansea, Swindon, Widnes, Wigan, Worcester and York.

Then, in June 2021, EE turned on 5G in a few more coastal locations as part of its beefing up of connectivity across coastal locations generally (mostly using 4G in places like Blackpool, Bournemouth and Brighton), The latest 5G locations to be enabled are: 

EE says it is doing this in anticipation of a bumper 'staycation' summer in the UK as foreign holiday opportunities remain scarce. 

Coverage remains fairly centred on built-up zones in all these areas and it's always worth checking out the EE coverage checker to see how widespread it is.

5G is also available at the following public transport hotspots in London: Euson, Waterloo, Liverpool Street, Charing Cross, Highbury, Islington, New Cross Gate Overground and Shoreditch High Street Overground. You can also get 5G access in London’s Piccadilly Circus, Clapham Common, and Hampton Court Palace gardens among other places. 

Other high footfall locations covered include Cardiff Central station, Glasgow’s Bath Street, Bath's Royal Cresent and Pulteney Bridge as well as Belfast’s Kingspan Stadium.

EE 5G phones

EE has the best range of 5G phones available from any UK network and we've listed them all for you below along with the best deals currently around. 

EE's range of 5G phones are available both online and in store. All these phones are available on EE 5G Smart Plan with unlimited minutes and texts and various amounts of data (including unlimited).

All of EE's 5G phones are marked Ready for 5G on EE's site. 

Apple iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini

With a brand new pink colour and camera enhancements, this year's iPhone 13 duo are more evolution from the iPhone 12 then a revolution. Apple seems to have abandoned its 'S' suffix for a tweak to the range, but these 5.4 and 6.1-inch phones are basically an iPhone 12 S. There's an improved processor as well as other tweaks like a changed notch at the top of the screen.

Apple iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max

Apple says the iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max are 'more Pro than ever'. It's not wrong, but you do pay for the privilege of owning one. The triple camera setup has an improved telephoto zoom, while the Super Retina XDR display now has a variable refresh rate up to 120hz, matching other high-end rivals. 

Samsung Galaxy S21 5G

Like all networks, EE is carrying the 2021 Galaxy S21. It's not the most striking entry to the series, but this 6.2-inch handset is a solid effort. And it's extremely powerful too, with Samsung's own octa-core Exynos 2100 featuring on all units in the UK and Europe. It's got great battery life and a camera system that takes some really top-notch shots. It's a triple camera setup, with 12 megapixel wide, 64 megapixel telephoto and 12 megapixel ultrawide cameras. 

Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra

The S21 Ultra is the pick of Samsung's 2021 handsets and is one of the best Android phones we've ever seen. As well as Samsung's  Exynos 2100 platform under the surface, there's also five cameras in this phone! That includes the best optical zoom of any phone camera, too, with 10x on the periscope telephoto lens. It's available in four colours - Phantom Gray, Phantom White, Phantom Violeta and Phantom Pink. 

Apple iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini

The iPhone 12 series may be Apple's first 5G phone, but this is a very powerful handset with a price tag to match - the monthly costs are quite considerable on EE. As well as the standard iPhone 12, there's an iPhone 12 mini as well if you want a smaller handset instead. Both iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini are available in Black, White, Red, Green and Blue. The great thing about the standard iPhone 12 is that it makes the step up to the iPhone 12 Pro look a little unnecessary. 

Apple iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max

The iPhone 12 Pro is the same 6.1-inch size as the standard iPhone 12 and as such is a little bit of a hard sell as it's considerably more than the so-called 'normal' model. The Pro Max, however, is supersized with a 6.7-inch monster display. Expect extremely expensive monthly deals on this phone, but the result is an incredible new 5G phone that you'll love. 

Google Pixel 5

The 6-inch Pixel 5 is a very popular phone already and features the very latest Android operating system as you'd expect from the official Google phone. There's an OLED display plus 128GB of storage and 8GB of memory plus a dual lens camera system (12.2 wide and 16 megapixel ultrawide). The device - like other Pixel phones - is based on Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G hardware. 

Oppo Find X3 Pro

The Oppo Find X3 Pro features some cutting-edge hardware including the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 platform powering everything along plus a 120hz display. There are also dual 50 megapixel cameras plus super-quick 65W SuperVOOC 2.0 Fast Charging. EE is also offering the other devices in the same range - the Find X3 Lite and Find X3 Neo. 

Samsung Galaxy S20 5G

Available in cloud pink, cloud blue and cosmic grey, the standard S20 may only come in a 128GB variant but this is an extremely powerful handset with Samsung's new eight-core Exynos platform and 5G modem. 

It's not a small phone as it has a 6.2-inch AMOLED display. You'll have to look elsewhere for that. The other two S20 handsets are even bigger and, while the other S20's pack a quad camera, this still has a triple, with a 64 megapixel sensor as the main lens. There's a 30x zoom, too. 

Samsung Galaxy S20+

Once again available in three colours, the S20+ ups the ante over the standard S20 in two ways - firstly the camera system and secondly the larger display. This adds an extra half an inch, so it's 6.7-inches. 

It's available in 128 and 512GB versions and the triple camera unit once again features a 30x zoom and 64 megapixel main lens as well as a 12MP ultra-wide camera. There's also fast charging like the other S20s, too, while it's available in cloud blue, cosmic black and cosmic grey. No pink this time.

Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra

WIth an even larger screen than the S20+, the S20 Ultra takes the S20 range to the max. Mind you, while the S20 Ultra is a step up from the S20+, it's not a huge upgrade. You get a 6.9-inch display this time. 

Aside from the screen size, the main difference is in the camera. There's not only a huge 108 megapixel lens, but it also has a 100x zoom (rather than 30x). The 108 megapixel lens sits alongside a 48 megapixel telephoto camera. The 100x zoom is more fun than something genuinely useful, but even so it's pretty cool. 

The S20 Ultra is available in 128 and 512GB versions with cosmic black or cosmic grey colour finishes.

Samsung A90 5G

EE seems determined to offer a selection of 5G devices to suit all sorts and like its rivals has also taken up the mantle of the A90 5G - a mid-range 5G handset from Samsung. We say mid-range as it's cheaper than the flagship S Series and Note Series below, but the specs here are anything but, with a 6.7-inch display, 48 megapixel main camera, octocore processor and 128GB of storage. For many, this will be the Samsung 5G phone to get - and who can blame them? 

EE 5G coverage

In terms of speeds so far, we've seen upwards of 400-600Mbps in London, but expect speeds at the lower end of this scale generally. As you'd expect, speeds do remain very variable and you'll notice your phone flipping back to 4G a lot. That's always going to be the case at the moment; as with all the networks, this is the start of a process. 

Like the other UK networks, EE uses some Huawei kit in its 3G and 4G network, but it started a process some time ago to remove Huawei gear from its core network and it isn't involved in the 5G core network.  

Three and EE work together to share key infrastructure between their networks - masts primarily - and work with Ericsson on this.

However, the UK Government ban on using Huawei gear in 5G networks is going to cause BT/EE some challenges. However, the cost hasn't risen further than BT's original estimate for the removal of Huawei gear - £500 million providing it doesn't need to be done quicker than 2027. 

EE seems confident that it is offering a great customer experience on 5G - back to consumer CEO Marc Allera and his mid-January 2021 comment piece on the issues of other networks not delivering on the coverage they promise: 

"We know, through independent analysts, that networks which rush to announce places without proper coverage can offer a much narrower customer experience. 

"It's not just about the number of towns and cities – although our expanding network means our customers still have access to the most extensive 5G coverage in the UK - it's the quality and availability of your 5G connection that counts.

"The lack of consistency in how, where and when networks claim to have 5G is frustrating. Yes, it’s frustrating to us; every fair and meaningful award for network coverage EE repeatedly wins. But it’s also frustrating for customers, who might buy into a claim only to be disappointed with the actual coverage they receive. It’s an area we are keen to address and are already working with Ofcom to monitor."

As part of their arrangement with Ofcom, the big four UK networks have also had to commit to bringing 4G to coverage to a greater percentage of rural areas, too - indeed it could mean that 92 percent of the UK will be covered. The networks won't have to guarantee any particular levels of 5G coverage for the foreseeable future, however, which will have interesting implications for rural areas.

EE 5G deals

EE's business price plans for 5G include unlimited data, anytime upgrade and free Mobile Iron Threat Defense. You can also choose a tailored plan with Business Select. While roaming in Europe is free (though data is subject to a 60GB a month fair use cap), you can add rest of the world roaming or a calling abroad option to make sure the tariff is suitable for your needs. 

Three months after launching 5G, EE also announced several Unlimited data plans for consumers, too. The move has to be seen as a reaction to Vodafone parking its tanks on EE's lawn with three unlimited data plans called Unlimited Lite, Unlimited and Unlimited Max plans, all of which are 5G-ready. 

However, while Vodafone's are speed restricted (or, rather, the two cheapest tariffs are), EE's don't have any speed restriction. They, are, however, generally more expensive, with SIM-only 5G plans starting at £44 a month for a 5G Smart SIM. That is completely unlimited data, calls and texts.  

The deals also come with swappable benefits such as Amazon Prime Video, access to the BT Sport app or a roaming package called Roam Further so you can use your inclusive data in the USA, Australia and elsewhere. 

EE has also announced an exclusive Xbox Game Pass Ultimate add-on with inclusive data. The offer enables all EE Android smartphone customers on a Smart or Essential plan to access Xbox Game Pass Ultimate with unlimited data for just £10 per month, saving over £100 a year.

As part of the celebration of its Xbox Game Pass Ultimate add-on, EE also announced two Gaming on the Go Pit Stops  - one on Brighton seafront and another on Liverpool’s Royal Albert Dock. Both are designed to showcase gaming over 5G. 

EE 5G broadband

BT has launched Hybrid Connect, which is a broadband service that uses cellular data as a backup, but this isn't yet a 5G offering. 

EE isn't making a massive play of 5G for home broadband but it has launched a service using the HTC 5G Mobile Smart Hub enabling you to share your 5G data for up to 20 users - ideal if you work out of the office as a team, such as at events where decent Wi-Fi coverage can't be assured. 

Crucially, it can also be used on battery power, so you can work on your laptop with 5G when you're out and about. 

Like many 5G phones, the HTC Hub is based on Qualcomm's Snapdragon 855 platform and runs Android 9 Pie. 

The device has a 7-inch display, 30 metre Wi-Fi range and a built-in Gigabit ethernet port. It also has 32GB of storage in addition to a speaker and microphone and can be used for media playback or with other Android apps should you wish. 

The hub costs £500 as a standalone device or you can get it from EE with 5G for a  upfront fee of  £100 with either 50GB of monthly data on a £50 per month, 24-month plan, or with 100GB on a £75 per month.

EE 5G for business

EE offers businesses numerous options including flexible plans so you can swap any of the benefits like roaming, extra data and international calls as you need. You can also upgrade any time you choose. 

There's also a data reserve feature so if you do happen to run out of data you won't be left unable to do important work. EE also sends out alerts for mobile security threats, too. 

EE's Business SIM-only plans start at £24 a month (ex. VAT) for 20GB of data. That also includes unlimited data and texts. 

Go to EE's Business Shop

Vodafone 5G wasn’t the first 5G network to launch in the UK, but it forced the pace with the introduction of unlimited tariffs. As Three had them already, it laid down the competitive gauntlet for EE and O2.

Clearly, Vodafone wants to be seen as the main 5G challenger for EE (instead of O2) and sees 5G (and unlimited data) as a key part of that. 

Vodafone was also the first to offer a 5G mobile and home broadband option for both business and home users, called Vodafone Together - there's more on that below. EE has now moved to offer a similar service to this, too.

Vodafone was also the first network to offer roaming on 5G. Although it’s restricted to Ireland, Spain, Germany and Italy for now (and only in 5G areas in those countries, of course), it’s clearly an area where Vodafone thinks it can lead. Coincidentally, Vodafone says 5G roaming doesn't yet work with the iPhone 12. 

Vodafone believes that 5G can provide a £6.3bn boost to UK manufacturing by 2030 as large corporates move toward having private 5G networks to increase productivity and security. Vodafone's Powering Up Manufacturing, Levelling Up Britain report suggests the biggest opportunity is in the North West, North East, Midlands and Wales.

The biggest use case for this is 5G wirelessly connected factories with bespoke 5G mobile private networks (MPNs) which means large quantities of data from thousands of devices simultaneously can be dealt with in real-time. The report suggests this would mean better and faster decision making, using machine learning to maximise productivity.

The report calls on the UK Government to set ambitious targets to become a global leader in the use of 5G technology in manufacturing over the next decade. 

The report - by WPI Economics and backed by Vodafone - recommends the creation of 5G test and innovation centres in the regions as a starting point. 

During the recent 2021 Ofcom spectrum auction, Vodafone acquired 40 MHz of spectrum in the 3.6 GHz band at a cost of £176.4 million. That's significantly less than other providers spent - EE, for example, spent just over £450 million. However, Vodafone says it's happy with its total holding of 90 MHz of 3.4 - 3.6 GHz spectrum and it has since traded some with O2 to ensure that both networks have contiguous blocks. 

Ahmed Essam, CEO of Vodafone UK, said:  “This auction... means we will have the spectrum we need to further the roll-out of 5G to our customers, bringing high-speed connectivity and opening up new opportunities for products and services. 

"We have been successful in the 3.6 GHz band and have avoided expenditure on low band spectrum, where it is our strategy to refarm over time our significant 900 MHz holdings to carry 5G traffic."

So Vodafone is planning to use its existing spectrum to provide longer range, lower bandwidth blanket coverage for 5G, whereas other networks have had to buy this in. 

Read on for the full lowdown on how Vodafone is rolling out 5G technology. 

Vodafone 5G cities and towns

Vodafone 5G coverage has grown significantly since launch and the service is now available in 100 UK towns and cities, with more to follow imminently. 

The full list is as follows: Aberdeen, Alexandria, Ambleside, Aughton (Sth Yorks), Basingstoke, Bebington, Belfast, Birkenhead, Birmingham, Bishopbriggs, Blaydon, Bolton, Bootle, Bournemouth, Bradford, Bristol, Bristol Airport, Cardiff, Cheadle and Gatley, Cheltenham, Chesterfield, Clydebank, Crawley (West Sussex), Crosby, Dewsbury, Dinas Powys, Droylsden, Dudley (West Midlands), Dundee, Eccles, Edinburgh, Eston and South Bank, Felling, Gateshead, Glasgow, Gloucester, Gosforth (Tyne & Wear), Guildford, , Hebburn, Helensburgh, Horwich, Huddersfield, Huyton-with-Roby, Inner London, Isles of Scilly, Jarrow, Kingston upon Hull, Kingswood (Bristol), Lancaster, Leeds, Lisburn, Liverpool, Llandudno, Long Benton/Killingworth, Manchester, Mangotsfield, Middlesbrough, Morley, Mosborough/Highlane, Newbury, Newcastle upon Tyne, Newtownabbey, North Shields, Oldbury/Smethwick, Outer London, Paisley, Penarth, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Prescot, Prestwich, Pudsey, Rawmarsh, Reading, Rochdale, Rotherham, Salford, Sheffield, Shipley, Solihull, South Shields, Southampton, Stockport, Stockton-on-Tees, Stoke-on-Trent, Stranraer, Stretford, Sunderland, Sutton Coldfield, Swansea, Swinton and Pendlebury, Tynemouth, Urmston, Wallasey, Wallsend, Warrington, Washington, Whitley Bay, Wolverhampton and York.

You can see if Vodafone 5G is available in your area using the network using its network status checker.

Vodafone 5G phones

After a slow start, Vodafone has plenty of 5G devices now available including the latest from Apple and Samsung. 

If you buy a SIM-free 5G phone and want to use an existing contract you have with Vodafone, you’ll need a new SIM. If you’re buying a new 5G handset from Vodafone it will, of course, come with a 5G SIM. 

Vodafone has now announced it will be joining with European operators Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Telefónica and Telia Company to launch a new Eco Rating for phones from 12 vendors so new owners can assess the environmental impact of their new devices. Launch partners include Bullitt Group – Home of CAT and Motorola rugged phones, Doro, Nokia (HMD Global), Huawei, MobiWire, Motorola / Lenovo, OnePlus, Oppo, Samsung , TCL / Alcatel, Xiaomi and ZTE. Note that Apple isn't involved. Customers can learn more about the initiative at ecoratingdevices.com

Apple iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini

The 5.4-inch iPhone 13 mini and 6.1-inch iPhone 13 are a duo to be reckoned with and even though the cameras are not up to the level of the iPhone 13 Pro, they still take wonderful pictures. There are also new camera features such as cinematic mode and various presets.  Plus there's a new pink finish, too, in addition to a new, tougher ceramic shield coating for the front glass. Entry-level storage has also been increased to 128GB. 

Apple iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max

With a new 1TB storage option,  triple camera with improved telephoto zoom and variable refresh rate display up to 12hz, there's plenty to love about the new iPhone 13 Pro range, which clock in at 6.1 and 6.7-inches. The question is if you can justify the expense over the already-great iPhone 13 - though the finish on the Pro range is certainly a cut-above, with a new sierra blue colour the pick of the bunch. 

Apple iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini

As with almost every other network going, Vodafone also has the latest iPhones in its range. The iPhone 12 series may be Apple's first 5G handset, but the US company hasn't compromised, bringing 5G to all its new devices and using Qualcomm modems inside. The iPhone 12 mini is a completely new, small format flasgship iPhone, but the sweet spot is the standard new iPhone 12 which makes the step up to the iPhone 12 Pro look a little unnecessary. Both iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini are available in Black, White, Red, Green and Blue.

Apple iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max

The iPhone 12 Pro is the same 6.1-inch size as the standard iPhone 12, but the Pro Max steps things up a gear to 6.7-inches, making it the largest-ever screen on an iPhone. It includes a few extra camera smarts over the other models and low light performance is quite remarkable. However, you've got to really want an extra camera lens to step up to the Pro, as well as the super-sized screen if you go as far as the Pro Max. 

Samsung Galaxy S21 5G

Like all networks, Vodafone is also carrying the main handset of 2021 so far - the 6.2-inch Galaxy S21 5G and the - below - larger Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G. Both phones use Samsung's latest Exynos 2100 hardware, which brings you a high performance and octa-core processor. The Galaxy S21 is slightly cheaper than the S20 was at launch but it doesn't show, since this is one of the best 5G phones around. It's got great battery life, too, while you can take a whole range of images with the triple camera setup. 

Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra

If the standard Galaxy S21 is worth checking out, the 6.8-inch S21 Ultra is even better though naturally more expensive than its brother. As well as the same octacore Exynos hardware, the five camera (yes, really) setup even boasts the best optical zoom of any camera, with a 10x offering. It even has support for the S Pen, usually found on the Galaxy Note. If you can afford it, it's worth the extra over the standard S21. 

Google Pixel 5

Google's Pixel 5 doesn't have bleeding edge hardware, but it's still a 5G force to be reckoned with and as you'd expect, it features the very latest Android operating system. . It's using Qualcomm's Snapdragon 765G hardware and features a 6-inch OLED display that's punchy and bright. There's also 128GB of storage and 8GB of memory, too. The camera system features dual 12.2 wide and 16 megapixel ultrawide lenses.

Samsung A90 5G

The A90 5G signals Samsung's intention to dominate the 5G space as best it can,  positioned as a cheaper offering than Samsung's other handsets (as Samsung's A Series phones generally are). But this is still a remarkably capable handset with an octocore processor, 48 megapixel main camera (triple camera on the rear) and 128GB of storage. It's even got a 6.7-inch display, too.

Samsung Galaxy S20 5G

The standard S20 is perhaps the sweet spot in terms of price and capability. It's a 6.2-inch phone with a super-bright AMOLED display available in cloud pink, cloud blue and cosmic grey.

There's only one storage capacity for the standard S20 - 128GB - but there's plenty of power on offer thanks to the latest-generation Samsung Exynos platform and 5G modem. 

The triple camera packs a 64 megapixel main sensor, 12 megapixel ultra-wide, 12 megapixel wide angle and a 30x zoom.

Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra

Compared to the S20+ this isn't a massive leap, but is a bit like a super-tuned version of that handset. It's once again vailable in 128 and 512GB versions but there are now only two colour options - and they're not exactly colours - cosmic black or cosmic grey.

It's 0.2-inches bigger than the S20+ at a huge 6.9-inches but where the Ultra really differs from the other handset is in the form of the camera. It has a 100x rather than 30x zoom while the megapixel count is similarly supersized; a huge 108 megapixel sensor sits alongside a 48 megapixel telephoto. 

The 100x zoom isn't the most practical of features, but it is fun and does impress even if you won't be using it every day. 

Vodafone 5G coverage

Like other UK providers, Vodafone is using mid-band spectrum for its 5G services that are close to the frequencies used by 4G. 

They are not using higher frequency technologies unlike many of the US networks who are deploying limited amounts of millimetre wave (mmWave) from the off. mmWave promises higher speeds but the coverage is shorter range and so requires more nodes. As with other UK providers, Vodafone hasn't said anything about mmWave rollout, but that has to be in its sights longer-term for urban areas. 

The network is experimenting with 5G standalone technology, however and Vodafone has announced a commercial pilot of 5G Standalone services in London, Manchester and Cardiff after a trial at Coventry University. It's the UK’s first live deployment to test 5G SA at scale, the idea being to allow commercial partners to test new SA-devices on a live network, and work with 5G technologies such as network slicing and time-sensitive networking (TSN).

Naturally, to get Vodafone 5G, you’ll need to be in an area that has 5G coverage. Remember that, if you’re in an area that doesn’t have 5G, your phone will just step down to 4G, 3G or 2G and will switch back to 5G when available.  

Vodafone is citing peak 5G speeds of peak speeds of 1Gbps - we’ve seen around 900Mbps next to a mast at Vodafone’s Newbury HQ - and average speeds of 150-200Mbps in other areas we’ve tried the signal. 

We’ve seen speeds hit around 180Mbps while out and about in a couple of Vodafone 5G locations. It’s early days though, and real-world speeds will increase as the 5G rollout goes on.

Vodafone has a long-standing network sharing deal with O2 which it has now extended for 5G. The benefit to this is extensive, enabling both networks to roll out 5G services quicker, particularly in areas where it may not have been cost-effective to deploy 5G otherwise. 

Vodafone and O2 reached a quick agreement after the second UK 5G auction in early 2021. They traded spectrum bands to create more efficient blocks of spectrum for each operator. 

"Large contiguous blocks support faster speeds, lower latency and greener 5G services," said Vodafone and O2 in a statement. 

"The move will, subject to approval from Ofcom, create a contiguous block of 80Mhz for O2, and ensure good proximity of Vodafone’s blocks totalling 90MHz of spectrum."

Ahmed Essam, CEO of Vodafone UK, said: "Over the last year Vodafone has kept the UK connected. We have invested in our network to deliver brilliant coverage for both calls and data, where and when our customers need it. And we have connected those most in need, from NHS and care workers to children needing to get online to continue their learning at home, and job seekers who have been left without work due to the pandemic. 

"The result of this auction and our agreement with O2 will help us continue our mission of connecting our customers for a better future. It means we have the best possible spectrum to continue giving our customers a fast and reliable 5G service. It will also enable us to open up amazing new possibilities for our enterprise customers, putting Britain at the forefront of innovation in vital areas like assisted surgery, remote training, and factory automation.”

Vodafone used a lot of Huawei equipment on the radio access side and was affected by the mid-2020 UK Government ruling that UK 5G networks need to remove Huawei gear over the coming years. Along with other UK vendors, Vodafone wasn't a fan of the news, with Vodafone CTO Scott Petty telling Reuters that "the UK’s leadership in 5G will be lost if mobile operators are forced to spend time and money replacing existing equipment".

"We are not tied to one supplier, but it is important to understand the extent of what is at stake here," he added.

Subsequently, Vodafone signed a deal with Samsung so it can deploy its virtualised Radio Access Network (vRAN) in the UK, as well as radios and other equipment to enable 4G and 5G coverage. It'll be the first rollout of Samsung's vRAN tech for 5G in Europe. 

In January 2020 Vodafone announced that it and O2 had deployed the first shared 5G sites - known as multi-operator radio access network (MORAN) technology. Vodafone says the key benefits are the reduction in energy use as well as the number of masts needed.

Within the agreement there is also provision for each network to ‘do their own thing’ at around 2,700 sites in 23 of the UK’s largest locations - that’s around 16 percent of Vodafone’s mast sites. At these places each network will install its own fibre backhaul connection and radio gear while still sharing the mast. 

The separate arrangement means each network can keep control of its busiest locations and also deploy future tech that, presumably, it doesn’t want the other to access. At other locations, all the gear will be shared. 

Interestingly, Vodafone has also started to share some of its 2600MHz frequency 4G spectrum with StrattoOpencell to offer high-speed mobile broadband in remote areas without fibre connectivity - the plan was hatched after Ofcom's decision in July 2019 to enable mobile operators to share spectrum. 

StrattoOpencell will start to provide 120Mbps mobile broadband services to some users in Devon through a bunch of 4G outdoor small cells.

Obviously, this doesn't affect the 5G rollout for now, but it's an interesting method that could have implications for how 5G is rolled out to rural areas, too. 

Vodafone 5G deals

Alongside the launch of 5G, Vodafone also announced a bunch of Unlimited data plans called Unlimited Lite, Unlimited and Unlimited Max plans, all of which are 5G-ready. These are also available for business users (at prices excluding UK VAT). 

If you’re getting a 5G plan for a business, you get a three month trial of Secure Net for protection against malicious sites and apps while you’re connected to the mobile network. Thereafter it will cost £1 a month - and you’ll need to make sure you cancel it if you don’t want it otherwise you will be automatically charged. 

All three tariffs offer you completely unlimited 5G downloading, but they do so at different speeds and you need to be aware that some of these tariffs are not going to give you a great experience. After all, if you've got a 5G phone you want to be able to use it to the best of its ability - and that is not using a restricted speed tariff.

Our pick of the deals is Unlimited Max which offers you the maximum speed available for £30 a month (£25 ex-VAT for business). Below that, Unlimited Lite (£23 a month, £19.17 ex-VAT for business) and Unlimited (£26 a month, £21.67 ex-VAT for business) offer relatively poor download speeds of 2Mbps and 10Mbps respectively, so aren’t really worth the cost-saving. 

Now, Vodafone has also introduced Evo, which is a flexible upgrade plan a bit like O2 Refresh. You can combine it with broadband should you wish - Vodafone Together - and it's available with selected phones only. 

At launch Vodafone offered Evo alongside iPhone 12 and Samsung Galaxy S21 costing £21 per month (with a £29 upfront cost) if you want the Samsung Galaxy S21 or £27 per month (with a £29 upfront cost) if you want the iPhone 12 instead.

The plan will also give you a saving if you want to add a smartwatch to it, as well. 

An Unlimited plan is a good idea for 5G downloads, because in our experience downloading over 5G can eat through data quickly. 

However, you are also able to get Vodafone’s Red tariffs for 5G.Red 1 (1GB, £11), Red 2 (5GB, £15) and Red 3 (20GB, £20) all have unlimited minutes and texts. The Red plans include roaming in 48 destinations as standard. Unlimited Max includes roaming in 77 destinations.

Consumer customers can add an entertainment pack for just £6 a month and choose from Spotify, Amazon Prime Video, Sky Sports Mobile or Now TV.

For gamers, Vodafone has also teamed up with the Hatch game streaming service to offer three months free with any new Vodafone 5G phone. 

As we mentioned, Vodafone is offering 5G roaming as part of this, currently available in the 5G-enabled areas of Ireland, Spain, Germany and Italy. You can find out exactly where you can get 5G roaming at Vodafone's site, but it includes Berlin, Bremen, Dortmund, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg Leipzig, Munich and Stuttgart in Germany. In Spain, Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Seville and Malaga are among those covered. Bologna, Milan, Naples, Rome and Turin are the places that have 5G in Italy. While in Ireland, Cork, Dublin, Galway, Limerick and Waterford all have 5G networks that Vodafone customers can roam on. 

As we mentioned above, Vodafone also has a combined fixed line broadband and 5G mobile tariff called Vodafone Together. This is available on a single bill and for a single set amount of £47 a month (combined 18 month SIM-Only and home broadband plan). New or upgrading broadband customers will also get a free Free Google Nest Hub Max, too. 

If you opt for Vodafone Together plan, you can choose from two home broadband plans giving guaranteed minimum download speeds of 25Mbps (Superfast 1) or 55Mbps (Superfast 2). 

Both those deals will get you unlimited broadband and a six-month free trial of the F-Secure SAFE security software.

Vodafone is also offering a free Apple TV 4K device with all new Vodafone Together sign-ups. And there's also a limited offer of a free year of the Apple TV+ streaming service for the initial signups, too (up to six family members can share a subscription with Family Sharing).

Vodafone 5G broadband

Vodafone has also announced its broadband service that uses Huawei’s Huawei 5G CPE Pro router that Vodafone markets as its 5G Gigacube. It’s essentially a wireless router that has a nano SIM in it - there’s no fixed line connection, it just needs power. 

You can, however, cable two devices like a Powerline network or games console directly into the router, it doesn’t just cater for wireless devices. Because it only needs power, you can theoretically use it anywhere, but it’s 21cm high so it’s not exactly portable. 

The business and consumer Gigacube tariffs are, essentially the same but Vodafone clearly sees the potential for Gigacube to help teams to work remotely en mass - such as at a corporate event, trade show or other temporary location. 

For Vodafone’s 5G broadband, you’ll obviously need to be in one of the Vodafone 5G areas mentioned above (although the router will still use 4G if you can’t get 5G at any point). You can connect up to 64 devices to the Gigacube. 

Contracts are available in two versions - 18 months or a rolling 30 day contract. 

The 18 month tariffs are available in both business and consumer versions. There’s an introductory offer to get unlimited data for £50 a month with £50 up front (£41.67 ex-VAT for business). 200GB per month costs £40 (£33.33 ex-VAT for business), while 100GB a month costs £30 (£25 ex-VAT for business).  

If you want a rolling 30 day tariff, you’ll need to pay £325 up front for the router, but you can then pay the same monthly amounts. Therefore, it’s currently better to take out the 18 month contract as you get the router for £50.  

Buy Vodafone's 5G broadband

Vodafone has also announced Vodafone Gigafast Broadband which will bring even faster connections to 15 UK towns and cities including Birmingham, Bristol and Liverpool in the first phase. This is a full fibre service so Fibre To The Premises (FTTP). Vodafone is introducing it after striking a deal with Openreach (formerly BT Openreach). The service promises potential speeds of up to  900Mbps, so download speeds up to 20 times faster and upload speeds 150 times faster than the UK's average home broadband connection in the UK.  

The service is available in Birmingham, Bristol and Liverpool initially. Vodafone already has 12 other fibre roll-outs under its agreement with CityFibre in Aberdeen, Bournemouth, Coventry, Huddersfield, Milton Keynes, Peterborough and Stirling with additional places to follow. 

Openreach chief Clive Selley said: “Our full fibre broadband network already covers more than 1.9 million premises in the UK. We’re keen to upgrade customers as quickly as possible to this new, ultrafast, future-proof platform.

"We’re determined to be the partner of choice for all Communications Providers and we’ll do that by offering the best connectivity and service with the widest possible coverage throughout the country.”

Vodafone 5G business

Vodafone believes that 5G will be transformational for businesses, bringing office Wi-Fi speeds to the outside and monitoring IoT (Internet of Things) devices in remote locations. Real-time capabilities will be vastly increased thanks to the reduction of latency, making things like augmented reality (AR) apps more realistic for the workplace. 

Crucially, 5G will enable connectivity in crowded areas, and that will also bring new possibilities for businesses who host a lot of people, such as concert venues, stadia and shopping centres.

Vodafone has 5G demonstration areas at its Digital Innovation Hub in MediaCity, Manchester as well as in the Customer Experience Centre at its Newbury HQ. 

One of its latest 5G trials is in the area of assisted surgery and the results will be used in the diagnosis and treatment of colon cancer, and in colonoscopy training. The 5G pilots enable clinicians to be transported into operating theatres virtually. The trials were conducted at University Hospital of Wales and University Hospital Llandough.

Tech company Proximie enables clinicians to transport themselves virtually into operating theatres. Vodafone worked with Proximie to provide colonoscopy training to nurses so more patients can be seen in a shorter time. It will also ensure higher-quality service by connecting experts from further afield. 

The trial used Vodafone’s 5G in-building coverage system to power Proximie’s platform.

Vodafone is also working with UK Power Networks to help deliver Constellation, the electricity network operator’s smart substation trial. The idea is to make the substations more efficient by installing computers in each location to monitor and manage the substations. General Electric, the University of Strathclyde, ABB and Siemens are also involved with the work with the aim being that each substation will be able to respond to changes to the electricity network or demands caused by large numbers of new types of devices being attached to the grid such as electric cars. 

For business, Vodafone has the same range of 5G devices that we've shown above, however, the prices it is showing are only for the 2mbps unlimited tariff. 

Vodafone also has a V-Hub online knowledge centre for businesses and as of July 2021 the network says that it has helped over 136,000 small and medium-sized businesses since its launch at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The hub was designed to help with the shift to onlineonmly business and assist with the move to home working where many businesses were dealing with new issues around remote working, cybersecurity and lack of knowledge around the tools that were available to them.

Why Vodafone 5G for business?

Three 5G was later than other networks to roll out in the UK, but it is now neck-and-neck with other key networks in terms of the number of locations covered, even if Three's footprint in each location is currently fairly modest. The network claims it now has over a million 5G customers. 

Three also has a very limited home 5G broadband service in operation.

Three has just undergone a refresh of its brand as it prepares to do battle with other vendors in the competitive 5G market. There's a new tagline, too; 'Life needs a big network' and a new, warmer colour scheme to go with it. 

Three has the UK’s fastest 5G network because it currently has more spectrum than the other UK operators. We've talked more about Three's spectrum allocation as well as its cloud-based core network in the network section below. 

The bottom line, however, is that the network believes it can "provide peak mobile speeds of up to 2x faster than other telco operators due to its substantial 5G spectrum holding." However, the spectrum allocations have been somewhat balanced out as a result of the latest UK 5G spectrum auction in early 2021. Three still added to its holding, by spending an additional £280 million on low band allocation (two 10MHz blocks). 

Three says "his triples the amount of low frequency spectrum [we] own and will have a transformative effect on its customers’ experience indoors and in rural areas.

"Three UK is in a fantastic position to deliver a great network experience for its customers now and in the future."

The signs are that Three's speed claims for its network are true to their promise, with speeds in the 600-700Mbps range in the fastest areas - indeed, we've previously seen over 700Mbps from one of Three's top-end sites. You'll be getting an average of around 400Mbps in these areas. However, you won't get this type of speed everywhere.

As we mentioned, Three was late to launch its 5G network in early 2020. 

This wouldn't necessarily have been noteworthy, expect that the company had taken out multiple-page newspaper ads to boast about its service during summer 2019.

In November 2019, Three admitted the obvious - its 5G launch wasn't going to happen on time. "There are a number of parts we need to put in place to deliver our 5G experience: 5G equipment on masts, the right backhaul transmission, as well as the need to acquire the right planning permissions from landlords," said Three in a statement.

"Added to this we also need to move all of our customer traffic onto the world’s first 5G cloud core network." Three's new cloud-based core network is powered by Nokia. 

Three 5G cities

Three has now rolled out to a total of 154 locations. However, coverage remains very limited in each of these areas - see exactly where is covered on the Three coverage checker. 

In some large towns and small cities only one small area is covered (presumably from a single mast) and this has caused BT/EE to say that rivals will lose customer support because of their claims. 

In a blog post, BT's consumer CEO says: "We know, through independent analysts, that networks which rush to announce places without proper coverage can offer a much narrower customer experience. 

"For example, test results suggest that one rival’s network [Three] which currently purports to have the highest number of 5G locations in the UK, actually has coverage levels lower than EE’s in many of those."

"We could loosen our criteria like some competitors; to be honest, it’s tempting, by so doing we would reveal 5G is actually in around 200 unique locations across the UK. However, we believe our claims should be as credible as our 5G is usable."

Allera makes further claims about network congestion which we can take with a pinch of salt, but it's certainly true that Three's footprint is smaller than EE's in many areas and the coverage checker shows that clearly. 

However, Three UK says its 5G investment is part of a £2 billion, 5 year programme to deliver "the UK's fastest 5G network". Three says it currently has 1300 5G sites. Part of this investment is in connecting mast sites to high-speed, high-capacity fibre. 3500 sites have now been upgraded to 10Gbps capable transmission giving faster and more reliable 4G and 5G.

Ahead of summer 2021 Three announced a further 110 sites had been enabled for 5G including many in rural locations. Three says its ambition is to connect 2,500 new sites over the next few years. 

David Hennessy, Chief Technology Officer at Three UK, said: “The investment we’re making in our network and IT infrastructure is vital to delivering on our promise of providing better connectivity, every day for every customer. Despite unprecedented challenges presented by a global pandemic, our 5G and 4G rollout is going strong and we’re making sure our customer remains at the centre of every decision we make.”

The full list of current Three UK 5G locations are: 

Aberdeen, Abingdon-on-Thames, Adlington, Aldershot, Aldridge, Balloch, Barnsley, Barrow-in-Furness, Basildon, Bath, Bedford, Belfast City, Billericay, Billingham, Birkenhead, Birmingham, Blackburn, Blackpool, Borehamwood, Bournemouth, Bradford, Brighton, Brimington, Bristol, Bromsgrove, Brookmans Park, Broughton Astley, Burton upon Trent, Cannock, Cardiff / Caerdydd, Chatham, Chelmsford, Cheltenham, Chesham, Christleton, Clayton-le-Woods, Clifton, Colchester, Copmanthorpe, Corringham, Coventry, Crawley, Crook, Cullingworth, Danderhall, Denholme, Derby, Dewsbury, Doncaster, Dundee, East Kilbride, Edinburgh, Ellesmere Port, Exmouth, Glasgow, Gorebridge, Grays, Greenock, Grimsby, Guildford, Hamilton, Hartley, Heanor, Heathcote, Hedge End, Hemel Hempstead, Hertford, Heswall, Horley, Horwich, Huddersfield, Huntington, Inchinnan, Ingleby Barwick, Ipswich, Irlam, Iver Heath, Kings Hill, Kings Langley, Kingston upon Hull, Kirkheaton, Leeds, Leicester, Leyland, Lincoln, Liverpool, London, Lower Stondon, Luton, Maidenhead, Maidstone, Manchester, Mansfield, Marlow Bottom, Metropolitan Castlereagh, Metropolitan Newtownabbey, Milton Keynes, Motherwell, Neston, Newcastle upon Tyne, Newhall, Newport / Casnewydd, Newquay, Newton Aycliffe, Newton-le-Willows, Normanton, Northampton, Nottingham, Nuneaton, Ottershaw, Oxford, Peterborough, Plymouth, Porthcawl, Portsmouth, Preston, Reading, Redcar, Royston, Sheffield, Shelly Green, Slough, South Heighton, South Normanton, Southampton, Southend-on-Sea, Southport, St Albans, St Blazey, St Columb Road, Stevenage, Stockton-on-Tees, Stoke-on-Trent, Sunderland, Sunninghill, Sutton in Ashfield, Swadlincote, Swindon, Tamworth, Telford, Thornaby-on-Tees, Wakefield, Walton, Warrington, Washington, Westhoughton, Weybridge, Wickford, Wigan, Winterbourne, Worcester, Worksop, Writtle and York.

Three 5G phones

Although Three is offering 5G at no extra cost to existing consumers, you'll need a 5G ready SIM. So if you decide to buy a SIM-free 5G phone but want to use an existing Three contract, you'll still need to change your SIM. 

Three is using a '5G ready' badge on appropriate phones on its website.

Apple iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini

Apple's latest non-Pro iPhones are the 6.1-inch 13 and 5.4-inch 13 mini and both have upgraded cameras and processor as well as new software enhancements such as Cinematic mode and presets for the camera. Although the camera is definitely better on the Pro models, there's less reason than ever to spend the (not insignificant) extra cash. 

The colours are slightly less standout than in the past, but there is a new pink hue. 

Apple iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max

With a new 1TB storage option, there's no doubt that the iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max are expensive, high-end handsets. You do get an experience above and beyond that offered by the standard iPhone 13, however. There's a triple camera setup with improved telephoto zoom and a more premium finish, too - this time including an all-new sierra blue finish. 

Google Pixel 5

Like the other UK networks, Three is offering Google's latest 5G phone. The 6-inch OLED display-toting Pixel 5 features the very latest Android operating system as you'd expect from the official Google phone. Based around Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G hardware, there's plenty to like here, especially if you're a regular user of Google apps and services. The Pixel 5 features a 12.2 wide and 16 megapixel ultrawide dual-camera system plus there's 128GB of storage and 8GB of memory. 

Samsung Galaxy S21 5G

This year's S Series phone is one of the best we've ever seen, though Samsung's everyday flagship is no longer a rarity - the rest of the smartphone market has caught up. However, Samsung is still using pretty top-notch tech here, with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 platform in the US and Samsung's latest Exynos hardware being used elsewhere. The 6.2-inch Galaxy S21 is cheaper than the S20 was at launch. The camera system is much-improved from earlier versions, while the battery life is pretty great, too. 

Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra

The 6.8-inch S21 Ultra is huge and rather more expensive than its brother. It is definitely the best S21 if you can afford it, largely because of its five-camera setup which includes a 10x optical zoom, the best zoom of any phone camera. Like the standard S21 it runs on Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 in the US and Samsung's own Exynos hardware elsewhere. It even has support for the S Pen, usually found on the Galaxy Note.

Apple iPhone 12 and 12 mini

The iPhone 12 mini is new to the range this time around, bringing a compact experience to a flagship phone. It'll appeal to many, but the standard iPhone 12 is the pick of the bunch this time around. The iPhone 12 Pro is the same 6.1-inch size as the standard iPhone 12 and, since the iPhone 12 is almost as capable, it's far better value. Both are available in Black, White, Red, Green and Blue.

Apple iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max

The Pro Max is a superb 5G handset and in many ways is the power iPhone to have - its camera has even more capabilities including stabilisation than the iPhone 12 Pro. Performance in low light is especially good, which hasn't traditionally been an iPhone strength. The Pro Max is certainly desirable though it is rather large at 6.7-inches. Since the 6.1-inch Pro is the same size as the standard iPhone 12, the latter is much better value. 

OnePlus Nord

Although the OnePlus 8 is a great phone, the Nord was the pick of OnePlus' 2020 phones. Not to be confused with the cheaper Nord N10 which is nowhere near as good, the standard OnePlus Nord is a 6.44-inch phone running on Qualcomm's Snapdragon 765G platform and OnePlus' OxygenOS software based on Android 10/11. The camera is pretty good, too - the setup is a quad-camera with a 48-megapixel main snapper. 

Samsung A90 5G

The third 5G handset from Samsung to come to Three after the below Galaxy S10 5G and the Note 10+ 5G. With a 6.7-inch display, it's the same size as the S10 5G and packs most of its punch with an octocore processor, 48 megapixel main camera, 4,500mAh battery, fast 25W charging and 128GB of storage. Samsung is definitely being aggressive on price with this handset and it's a much more appealing option than some of the other 5G handsets available. It really isn't that far off the capability of the S10 5G at all. 

Samsung Galaxy S10 5G

Samsung’s first-ever 5G handset is a terrific-looking device that's actually very different internally than the standard S10 and has a quad camera on the rear. It's also bigger than the standard S10 and even the S10+, partly to accommodate the extra 5G goodness and the required cooling - it clocks in at 6.7-inches and has a clever front dual-camera array that's cut into the corner of the display. That screen size is only just shy of the 5G version of the Mate 10 you can see below. Power comes from Samsung's own Exynos 9820 in Europe (US variants use Qualcomm's Snapdragon 855). 

Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ 5G

Available from Three in its largest 256GB capacity, the Note 10+5G comes in aura glow, which is basically grey or aura black which is, er, black. As with every other Note device the phone comes with the S Pen stylus - if you don't want this, then plump for the S10+ 5G or A90 5G instead. It's barely any smaller than this handset's huge 6.8-inch size. The Note 10+ is also powered by Samsung’s latest Exynos 9825 processor and 5G modem. There's a high-capacity 4,300mAh battery, too. 

Samsung Galaxy S20 5G

The standard Galaxy S20 is still a premium handset, of course, but it's available from a great price on Three's unlimited data tariff, which seems like a great deal to us. 

The S20 is available from Three in cloud pink, cloud blue and cosmic grey in a 128GB version only. Even though this is the lowest spec of the trio of new S20 handsets, there's plenty of power here thanks to Samsung's latest-generation octocore Exynos platform. 

It's also not small, with a super bright 6.2-inch AMOLED display. While the other S20's pack a quad camera, this still has a triple, with a 64 megapixel sensor at the heart. What's more, it's capable of 30x zoom. 

Samsung Galaxy S20+

Available in two storage sizes  - 128 and 512GB - the S20+ is like the S20 but adds an extra half an inch in screen size so it clocks in at 6.7-inches instead. 

The camera system is more comprehensive than the standard S20, too, with a quad-camera setup featuring a 64 megapixel telephoto lens and 12MP ultra-wide. Like the other S20s it can record video up to 8K - super high resolution. Like the others in the range, it has super-fast charging, too. 

Once again it's available in three colours - cloud blue, cosmic black and cosmic grey. It's available for just a few pounds more a month than the standard S20 so could be worth considering for the extra size and camera features.  

Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra

Available in 128 and 512GB versions with cosmic black or cosmic grey colour options, the S20 Ultra isn't going to be found in a bright colour anywhere. Serious colours for a serious phone. Like the S20+ versus the standard S20, the S20 Ultra is a step up from the S20+ but it's not vast.

It's 0.2-inches bigger than the S20+ at 6.9-inches with a 3,200 x 1,440 screen resolution. You get a quad-camera just like the S20+ but the S20 Ultra is capable of 100x (rather than 30x) while there's a - wait for it - super-huge 108 megapixel camera sensor to go alongside a 48 megapixel telephoto lens. 

The 100x zoom is more of a gimmick rather than something that's truly practical, but you can zoom into objects really effectively. 

Three UK 5G coverage

Three's 5G network rollout includes a new, cloud-based core network developed with Nokia. Three believes that there will be several benefits to it competitively and to customers as well. The new core network has four times the capacity and is more secure. 

Three also believes the new network will enable it to roll out products and services faster or to a specific set of subscribers (perhaps even in a single locale) as well as being more cost-efficient to serve the set of customers who consume the most data - over 10GB a month. 

With the UK Government banning 5G network equipment from Huawei it's going to cause a bit of upheaval for some mobile networks and indeed, Three will need to diversify the suppliers of its radio access gear as it seems it had chosen Huawei as the exclusive supplier. 

As we mentioned earlier, Three believes it will be able to have the UKs fastest 5G network because of its allocation of 5G spectrum – networks have to bid for spectrum in a spectrum auction. 

Part of the reason three says it will be able to be so fast is that it has the biggest chunk of contiguous spectrum – in other words, it’s mostly together in one 100Mhz block, though it has now added more low-band spectrum. 

Other networks – specifically O2 – originally believed Three is at a competitive advantage because of its contiguous spectrum as it almost certainly means the network will be able to achieve higher peak speeds. 

However, things have become more balanced after the early 2021 spectrum auction results. 

Ofcom enforced a 37 percent cap on the overall spectrum that any one mobile company could hold following the auction. Ofcom had also threatened to tie the network operators into an agreement to improve rural coverage on 4G. 

In response, the four UK mobile operators (BT/EE, O2, Three and Vodafone) are implementing a ‘shared rural network’ plan with the aim of delivering quality 4G coverage to at least 92 percent of the UK over the coming six years.

Therefore this requirement wasn't part of the auction itself, but it will be written into the contract when the spectrum is awarded. Presumably by coordinating efforts in rural areas, there is also a cost-saving for the networks, too. 

Three hasn't yet launched eSIM, but it sounds like it is set to do so later in 2021 which may also include support for Apple Watch cellular. 

Three 5G deals

Three's tariffs are all 5G ready. That's on all contract, SIM only and Pay-as-you-go (PAYG) plans.

That means you won't need to upgrade if you're on an existing tariff as Three is making 5G available at no extra cost. The catch, of course, is that you will need a new 5G phone to take advantage of 5G speeds. New and existing customers won't have 5G speed caps, either. 

Given that Three's traditional strength has been data-driven tariffs, it is focusing on this again.

Pay as you go customers are also catered for, with double data on £10 packs as well as the chance to get 30GB for the price of 20GB at present. 

Three 5G broadband

Three’s first foray into 5G has been to introduce a home broadband service using Huawei’s 5G CPE Pro router, which is also being used by Vodafone for its home 5G offering.

At present Three’s service is only limited to some London areas. We’re expecting more UK expansion in 2021 as it opens up 5G services elsewhere but Three has been clear that it will prioritise its 5G mobile service first. 

The use of Huawei equipment in your home really isn't a problem. If you've had 4G broadband before, or used a separate portable hotspot that wasn't on your phone, chances are that device was made by Huawei, too. 

The 5G CPE Pro router works just like the fixed-line router that's many of us have in our homes now, save for the fact it has a microSIM card inside. You even get wired network ports so you can connect it to a Powerline network or to a games console or other device that doesn't have Wi-Fi - not that there are too many of these devices available on the market these days.

The home broadband offering is plug-and-play with next-day delivery - we're keen to test it out soon and will let you know our thoughts. 

Three is campaigning the UK Government to make it easier for it to roll out 5G broadband in more rural areas where fibre is costly to install. What Three wants is for planning rules to be relaxed to enable it to more easily deploy 5G equipment. 

Three's chief technology officer David Hennessy, said: "Gigabit speed internet is critical for the UK’s long-term prosperity. However, the government is too focused on investing in one type of technology - fixed line.

"Fixed line, or fibre, is significantly more difficult to roll out than FWA (Fixed Wireless Access), which only needs a mobile signal to operate. It’s time for a greater consideration of a wider pool of technology, particularly FWA, to help those in rural areas have access to faster internet and ultimately help reduce the digital divide."

Analyst Kester Mann from CCS Insight said of the campaign: "Although current broadband networks are sufficient for many of today’s needs, future demand for more data-intensive services will soon start to push their limits.

"The Government’s ambition to reach at least 85% of UK premises with gigabit-capable broadband by 2025 is an ambitious target. It will necessitate urgent policy reform to remove barriers to network deployment, an acceleration in build-out ambition from UK providers and an open approach to new connectivity solutions through a mix of technologies. 

"5G fixed wireless access can form a significant part of this."

See if you can get Three's 5G home broadband

Three 5G business

Currently, Three 5G offers numerous benefits to business customers including free subscriptions to WeWork, Moo business card discounts and site creation with Wix.com. 

Three offers stacks of phones on its business tariffs, but currently, it isn't pushing 5G phones on business plans per se. 

Three has launched a Boundless Business deal with unlimited calls and data SIM packs from £5 each. 

A new business survey conducted by Three UK in early 2021 showed what's important to businesses in a time after COVID-19 lockdowns. 

Whilst many have been significantly impacted by lockdowns, the survey found that many businesses had managed to break free from traditional models, with success helped by various factors including (naturally) better technology and connectivity (49%), innovative ways of working (26%), and an increased focus on online presence (21%). A quarter of the companies surveyed, believe that ecommerce is now their biggest opportunity.

More than a third of UK employees continued to work from home in early 2021 with interestingly most workers claiming to feel ‘very connected’ to their colleagues (68%), and managers (62%). The survey further found that since the pandemic, employees have made more effort to check in with one other (48%) and employers have made more effort on communicating too (40%).

Over half of employees want more flexibility in working environment going forward, while around 45 percent of people want to work from anywhere they wish in future. 

Check out Three's business offering

Apple iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini

Apple's new everyday duo are superb handsets available in a changed variety of hues including a brand new pink. The processor takes a move forward, while there are improved cameras and features such as cinematic mode. The gap to the Pro is significant, but importantly this 5.4 and 6.1-inch pair are significantly cheaper.  

Apple iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max

There's no doubt that the iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max are expensive handsets, but you do get an experience above and beyond that offered by the standard iPhone 13. Notably there's a triple camera setup with telephoto zoom, a variable refresh rate display up to 120hz and premium finish, too. 

Apple iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini

Apple's new everyday duo are superb handsets available in a changed variety of hues including a brand new pink. The processor takes a move forward, while there are improved cameras and features such as cinematic mode. The gap to the Pro is significant, but importantly this 5.4 and 6.1-inch pair are significantly cheaper.  

Apple iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max

There's no doubt that the iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max are expensive handsets, but you do get an experience above and beyond that offered by the standard iPhone 13. Notably there's a triple camera setup with telephoto zoom, a variable refresh rate display up to 120hz and premium finish, too. 

Apple iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini

Apple's new everyday duo are superb handsets available in a changed variety of hues including a brand new pink. The processor takes a move forward, while there are improved cameras and features such as cinematic mode. The gap to the Pro is significant, but importantly this 5.4 and 6.1-inch pair are significantly cheaper.  

Apple iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max

There's no doubt that the iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max are expensive handsets, but you do get an experience above and beyond that offered by the standard iPhone 13. Notably there's a triple camera setup with telephoto zoom, a variable refresh rate display up to 120hz and premium finish, too. 

Apple iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini

Apple's new everyday duo are superb handsets available in a changed variety of hues including a brand new pink. The processor takes a move forward, while there are improved cameras and features such as cinematic mode. The gap to the Pro is significant, but importantly this 5.4 and 6.1-inch pair are significantly cheaper.  

Apple iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max

There's no doubt that the iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max are expensive handsets, but you do get an experience above and beyond that offered by the standard iPhone 13. Notably there's a triple camera setup with telephoto zoom, a variable refresh rate display up to 120hz and premium finish, too. 

While O2 5G was the third of the big four UK networks to go live, it has a large customer base to serve with 5G - it remains the UK's biggest phone network serving over 25 million connections. 

The coming months are set to be interesting for O2 since its merger with Virgin Media was approved by UK regulators in late May and the two organisations are now working to integrate themselves in a joint venture. Virgin Media O2 - as the combined organisation will be known - will look after around 47 million mobile, home and business connections, including around 41 million mobile connections. 

Mike Fries, CEO of Liberty Global, and José Maria Alvarez-Pallete, CEO of Telefonica, commented: "This is a watershed moment in the history of telecommunications in the UK as we are now cleared to bring real choice where it hasn’t existed before, while investing in fibre and 5G that the UK needs to thrive."

O2 now has nearly 200 locations live with 5G. O2 spent much of its pre-5G work focusing on making its 4G network (which is, of course, the backbone for 5G) as good as it could be and said it was investing around £2 million a day into its infrastructure.

O2 also added to its 5G spectrum holding during the latest Ofcom auction, spending just shy of £450 million. Mark Evans, CEO of O2 said, "We are pleased to announce that Telefónica UK (O2) has secured a significant share in the latest spectrum auction, investing £448m to obtain 40Mhz of 3.6GHz and 20MHz of 700 MHz FDD. 

"We are delighted with the result, which secured the right spectrum at a fair price. This additional spectrum will allow for continual improvement in our network."

Vodafone and O2 have since announced they are trading some 5G spectrum - more details on that below. 

If you take into account O2's MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) customer base including Giffgaff, Tesco Mobile, Sky Mobile and Lycamobile, O2 manages a total of 34.1 million connections. O2 owns Giffgaff outright while Tesco Mobile is a joint venture with Tesco). Tesco Mobile has also now launched its 5G service in the same locations as O2. 

Let's now look at where O2 5G is available. 

O2 5G cities and towns

O2 originally launched 5G in each of the UK's capital cities - London, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Belfast in a similar move to the other networks. O2 also rolled out 5G to Leeds (where it has an office) as well as O2's home town of Slough where its head office is based. 

However, things have moved on significantly. O2 5G is now live in almost 200 locations. These include: 

Aberdeen, Ambleside, Ashford, Aughton, Aylesbury, Banstead, Basildon, Basingstoke, Beaconsfield, Bedford, Belfast, Bilston, Birkenhead, Birmingham, Blackburn, Blackpool, Blaydon, Bolton, Bournemouth, Bradford, Bradley Stoke, Bridge of Don, Brighton, Bristol, Brombourgh, Bury St Edmunds, Byfleet, Cambridge, Cardiff, Chadwell St Mary, Chatham, Chelmsford, Cheltenham, Chesterfield, Chipstead, Clacton-on-Sea, Colchester, Coventry, Darlington, Dartford, Derby, Dewsbury, Dinas Powis, Doncaster, Dudley, Dundee, Dunstable, Durham, Dyce, Eastbourne, Edinburgh, Egham, Epsom, Esher, Eton and Windsor, Falmer, Gateshead, Gatton Bottom, Gillingham, Glasgow, Gloucester, Gravesend, Grays, Great Yarmouth, Halifax, Harlington, Harlow, Hastings, Hebburn, Hemel Hempstead, Hextable, High Wycombe, Hove, How Wood, Huddersfield, Hull, Inverness, Ipswich, Iver Heath, Jarrow, Lancaster, Leeds, Leicester, Lincoln, Lisburn, Liverpool, Llandudno, London, Longford, Loughborough, Lowestoft, Luton, Maidstone, Manchester, Mansfield, Middlesbrough, Milton Keynes, Monifieth, Morley, Musselburgh, New Denham, Newbury, Newcastle Upon Tyne, Newtownabbey, North Shields, Northampton, Norwich, Nottingham, Nuneaton, Orpington, Oxford, Peterborough, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Potters Bar, Rainham, Reading, Redhill, Rochdale, Rotherham, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Rugby, Salford, Sheffield, Shepperton Green, Slough, Solihull, South Shields, Southampton, Southend-On-Sea, Staines, Stevenage, Stockport, Stockton, Stoke-on-Trent, Stranraer, Strathclyde, Sunbury, Sunderland, Swansea, Swindon, Thundersley, Tynemouth, Wakefield, Warrington, Washington, Watford, Wavetree, West Bromwich, Weybridge, Whickham, Whitley Bay, Wolverhampton, Worthing and York.

In time for Summer 2021, O2 said it had now upgraded more than 600 cell sites across "coastal and tourist hotspots" with many of these locations now having 5G connectivity including locations such as Tynemouth King Edwards Bay, Llandudno West Shore, Edinburgh Castle, the V&A Museum and Bournemouth Pier. Other museums covered include the National Portrait Gallery, Natural History Museum, the Mary Rose Museum, York Castle Museum and the Scottish National Portrait Gallery. 

O2 says this drive is partly driven by the rise in staycations this year as a result of the lack of foreign holidays available. 

O2 has also started to roll out its low band 5G spectrum, aimed at further widening the network's 5G footprint and strengthening indoor penetration. 

Jeanie York, Chief Technology Officer at Virgin Media O2 said: "After a year like no other, we know how important it has been to stay connected. That’s why we’re committed to providing our customers with reliable connectivity all across the UK - as shown by our £448m investment on newly released spectrum - to increase capacity in our network and power the technology of the future, as well as spearheading the Shared Rural Network."

O2 has also been busy rolling out 5G to major transport hubs and entertainment venues. The O2 in London's North Greenwich and Twickenham Stadium are among the locations covered - the latter because of O2's sponsorship of the England Rugby Union team. 

O2 5G phones

For a while, O2's range of 5G phones was a little limited, but it has now got a full range of devices available. 

Apple iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini

Apple's new everyday duo are superb handsets available in a changed variety of hues including a brand new pink. The processor takes a move forward, while there are improved cameras and features such as cinematic mode. The gap to the Pro is significant, but importantly this 5.4 and 6.1-inch pair are significantly cheaper.  

Apple iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max

There's no doubt that the iPhone 13 Pro and Pro Max are expensive handsets, but you do get an experience above and beyond that offered by the standard iPhone 13. Notably there's a triple camera setup with telephoto zoom, a variable refresh rate display up to 120hz and premium finish, too. 

Apple iPhone 12 and 12 mini

The standard iPhone 12 is in many ways the pick of the iPhone 12 range with plenty of reasons not to go for the same-sized iPhone 12 Pro - though we love the Pro Max as you can see below. The iPhone 12 range comes with the latest A14 Bionic platform so there's no performance limitation either (Pro has more RAM though). Available in Black, White, Red, Green, Blue, there's also the iPhone 12 mini to consider, too. 

Apple iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max

While the iPhone 12 Pro doesn't do enough to distinguish itself from the standard iPhone 12, the Pro Max certainly does with its huge display and sheer desirability. It's a super performer too while the cameras are among the best we've seen, especially in low light. It's eye-wateringly expensive, though. 

Google Pixel 5

Google's Pixel 5 sits above the Pixel 4a 5G as Google's flagship Pixel phone. Naturally it's 5G capable and, since it's a 6-inch phone anyway, there's no larger XL model which we've seen with earlier Pixel devices. It's using Qualcomm's Snapdragon 765G hardware, an OLED display, 128GB of storage and 8GB of memory as well as a dual 12.2 wide and 16 megapixel ultrawide camera system. As you'd expect, it features the very latest Android operating system. 

Samsung Galaxy S21 5G

The 6.2-inch Galaxy S21 may not be the revelatory 'S Series' entry that some of its older brothers were, but that's largely due to the fact that others match Samsung's handsets on power now. Still, with Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 power in the US and Samsung's best-ever Exynos platform elsewhere, this is a formidable phone that's cheaper than the S20 was at launch. It's also got great battery life and a camera system that takes some really great shots. 

Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra

You do pay more for the S21 Ultra than the standard S21, of course, but the S21 Ultra is the pick of Samsung's 2021 handsets. It's a cracker and even has support for the S Pen, usually found on the Galaxy Note. With five cameras on board, it's got the best zoom of any phone camera, too, with a 10x optical on the periscope telephoto lens. Once again it boasts Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 power in the US and Samsung's superb Exynos 2100 platform elsewhere.

Samsung Galaxy S20 5G

While this is the lowest priced and smallest S20, it's still a premium smartphone with a large 6.2-inch AMOLED display. It's only available in once capacity version - 128GB.

While the other S20's pack a quad camera, this still has a triple, with a 64 megapixel sensor and whopping 30x zoom. Like the other S20s, it can record video up to 8K too.

It's available from O2 in cloud pink, cloud blue and cosmic grey

Samsung Galaxy S20+

Moving up in size, the S20+ adds and extra half an inch to the standard S20 - with a 6.7-inch display while there's also a quad-camera instead of a triple featuring a 64 megapixel telephoto lens and 12MP ultra-wide, too.

It's available in 128 and 512GB versions in three colours - cloud blue, cosmic black and cosmic grey. 

The per-month cost isn't that much more than the standard S20, so it's definitely an option if you'd like a bigger screen. 

Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra

The S20 Ultra is basically the S20+ but turned up to the max. It's a step-up from that model in many ways - the screen is slightly bigger, while the quad-camera is upgraded, too. 

The S20 Ultra has a huge 100x (rather than 30x) zoom while there's a 108 megapixel camera plus 48 megapixel telephoto lens, too. The zoom is remarkable though its usefulness is a bit limited. 

The S20 Ultra comes in two serious colours - cosmic black or cosmic grey.

OnePlus Nord

Not to be confused with the cheaper Nord N10, the standard OnePlus Nord was released in August 2020 and is a cracker for a modest, mid-range outlay. It's a 6.44-inch phone based around Qualcomm's fine Snapdragon 765G platform. There's a quad-camera with a 48 megapixel main snapper. It runs OnePlus' OxygenOS software based on Android 10/11. 

Samsung A90 5G

The A Series is, notionally, Samsung's mid-range phone lineup, but the top handsets are nudging closer to the S Series in terms of what they can do. Indeed, the A90 5G spec sheet is barely indistinguishable from the S10 5G and also has a same-sized 6.7-inch display, too. 

There's also an octocore processor, 48 megapixel main camera (part of a triple lens setup) and 128GB of storage, so plenty of space for your stuff. 

Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ 5G

This is a 6.8-inch supersized version of Samsung’s Galaxy Note. It's very similar to the S10 5G, although there are some compromises compared to that model, notably in the camera department where there's a triple instead of quad camera and on the front there's a single rather than dual. 

Of course, what you do get with every Galaxy Note is Samsung's excellent S Pen stylus that slots into the bottom of the phone (on one side). If you don't need the stylus, get the S10 5G instead. 

O2 5G coverage

O2 and Virgin have now merged, but O2 is close to another mobile network - it has a long-standing network-sharing deal with Vodafone.

The two networks have coordinated their efforts for some time - the key benefit behind is that they can speed up the rollout of 5G by sharing key infrastructure - the physical network sites where cell towers are based, the fibre backhaul as well as the mast and cell equipment. This continues in the 5G era. 

The pair's agreement for the rollout sees 2,700 sites in 23 larger UK towns and cities keep separate provision for each network. So while the mast will remain shared, all the other equipment will be separate. That's presumably a matter if control and also, possibly, ensuring each retains a competitive edge. 

As 5G becomes the norm, it will also help each to bring 5G services to areas where it may not have been financially viable otherwise. "We’re moving at pace with our 5G rollout," said Mark Evans, O2's CEO. "5G offers critical support to the UK’s digital economy, supporting jobs and growth."

The two networks again worked together after the second UK 5G auction in early 2021 - the two reached a deal to trade spectrum bands to create more efficient blocks of spectrum for each operator. 

"Large contiguous blocks support faster speeds, lower latency and greener 5G services," said Vodafone and O2 in a statement. 

"The move will, subject to approval from Ofcom, create a contiguous block of 80Mhz for O2, and ensure good proximity of Vodafone’s blocks totalling 90MHz of spectrum."

Mark Evans, CEO of O2, added: "This year O2 is investing more than ever in its network to improve coverage and experience. Securing contiguous blocks of spectrum is crucial to harnessing the true power of 5G - we will have the strongest indoor and outdoor connectivity and an ultra-reliable frequency.

"O2 is a champion for coverage and reliability, and remains committed to responsibly and securely improving the network experience for all our customers across the UK. This deal with Vodafone is further evidence of our commitment to customers and we’re hugely excited about the possibilities of our 5G network."

Now that the UK Government has mandated the removal of Huawei gear, it's going to cause a bit of upheaval for some mobile networks but O2 says it has already to committed to using gear from Nokia and Ericsson. 

O2 is using Ericsson Cloud Core technology in its main network as well as in the Radio Access Network (RAN). Coincidentally, Ericsson says it now has more than 70 5G agreements with networks, 21 of which are now live.

O2 5G deals

O2 has a range of unlimited data plans (limitless) in an effort to match the recently-announced unlimited plans from Vodafone who were followed by EE (Three already had unlimited tariffs, of course). O2's SIM-only unlimited plans start at £35 per month. These Limitless plans are also available as part of O2's Family and Student plans, too.

If you're OK with things being slightly more limited, there is a 50GB SIM-only data plan available for £25 a month. That'll bag you unlimited minutes and unlimited texts as well as O2 Priority access like all of O2's tariffs. You can also roam at no extra cost in 75 destinations including the USA.

O2's 5G custom plans give you freedom on the contract term, data allowance and upfront cost for your 5G phone. You can also choose how much you want to pay upfront and how to spread the remaining cost between 3 and 36 months. Furthermore, you can also flex your 5G data allowance up or down every month to suit your needs. 

In the light of the freebies offered by other networks, O2 has now launched O2 Extras which, essentially offers digital perks for O2 customers via the MyO2 platform. This includes Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Music Unlimited, Audible (also owned by Amazon), the Cafeyn newstand app and international bolt-ons. Like offerings from other networks, you can pick the one that suits you. 

O2 Extras is available to both new and upgrading O2 Pay Monthly customers on handset, tablet and SIM only contracts. However, there are some caveats as to the duration of your membership. 

New customers and those upgrading to contracts of 30GB/month will get six-month memberships, while those on 5GB – 30GB/month will have three-months. 

O2 5G broadband

O2 hasn't yet announced any plans for a 5G home or business broadband service, but considering its key rivals have, we think it's only a matter of time before it starts talking about this. 

O2 5G for business

O2 believes that 5G is "one of the biggest opportunities for 5G is its potential to transform businesses. 5G is more than just pure connectivity. It has the potential to transform every sector it touches".

The network has published two documents that will be of interest for businesses thinking of moving to 5G services. The first is a full guide to 5G for businesses on O2 (direct PDF link) and the second is a 5G whitepaper for CTOs that you need to give your details for. 

O2 has launched 5G business tariffs to suit businesses of every size, whatever the data requirements. SMB and Enterprise customers will benefit from 5G Access, details of which will be announced in the following months.  

O2 Business has launched a new AI technology known as Spatial Insights that provides real-time insights to help bricks and mortar stores to measure customer engagement through metrics such as numbers through the door, queue lengths, and product engagement. The tech - which will be using 5G in the future - is piloting in 20 of O2's own stores. 

As we mentioned earlier, O2 has been working with NWG to explore ways in which remote workers will be assisted by 5G, as well as the potential for it in more traditional workplaces. 

O2 has also announced a partnership with Samsung and the NHS to test 5G in six ambulances from the East of England Ambulance Trust to see how 5G can help paramedics treat patients through better connectivity and therefore better access to real-time video and scanning. 

In May 2021 O2 announced it had partnered with Microsoft to trial the benefits of on-premise MEC within a private 5G network, focusing on security and low latency. The proof of concept aims to pave the way for secure data management, enabling confidential information to stay on-premises at all times. The technology will be run via the Microsoft Azure platform – its first deployment utilising a UK-based private 5G network.

O2 also recently announced it had launched a Private 5G Network initiative with aerospace manufacturer Leonardo. The trial with Microsoft will be similar.

You're able to buy each of the 5G phones above on a business tariff. O2 has also announced it's the exclusive UK partner for Microsoft's Surface Pro X 2-in-1, although it will only be available on 4G for now from £44.78 per month for 500MB data with a £20 upfront payment.

O2 says that as we recover from the lockdowns of 2020 the UK is set for a small business boom fuelled by home working and the flexibility that comes from that. The network estimates that so-called 'smartphone businesses' could create 35,500 new jobs and add a whopping £790 million to UK GDP over the next three years. However, the O2 Business report suggests that there are several barriers to startups including access to tech, costly, inflexible mobile tariffs and start-up costs. 

Check out O2 business

This is 5G Radar's roundup of the best 5G deals anywhere, whether you're buying 5G phones in the US or the UK. 

This page gathers together the best 5G tariffs on the hottest handsets, whether you want a flagship phone or something a little more affordable. The iPhone 13 series is now with us and we've got the best deals on those handsets, too. 

While flagship phones are now almost all 5G capable, more 5G phones are now popping up at the mid-range and lower end of the market. These include names such as the OnePlus Nord/Nord 2, Xiaomi Mi 11 (Mi 11 Lite) or Samsung Galaxy A52 5G which are a steal on many deals. 

What's more, last-generation 5G handsets are only going to get cheaper. Often these models are less than a year old.

2021 is already proving to be a bumper year for 5G rollout with numerous networks announcing new locations and increased capacity thanks to new spectrum allocations and investment in infrastructure. 

Our 5G deals are constantly updated with our easy-to-use and widgets which you can see below. These deals will change on a regular basis, so do check back if you can't find what you want. 

What 5G phones are available now?

All the major brands now have 5G phones available including Apple with the iPhone 12 and 13 series, Google with the Pixel 5 and 4a 5G and OnePlus with its various handsets including the latest OnePlus 9 series. 

Samsung still leads the way in terms of quantity with a full range of 5G phones now on the market including last year's Note 20 and Galaxy S20 series (and the newer S20 FE 5G variant) plus the Galaxy S21 series, Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3. There are plenty of 5G phones from other brands such as Oppo, Redmi and Realme, too. There's also Xiaomi with its excellent Mi 11 series. 

Oppo is certainly a name on the rise and it has just launched the Oppo Find X3 Series in the UK on Three and EE - those handsets are definitely worth checking out. Oppo is the sister company to OnePlus and is already getting a good reputation for quality phones. 

OnePlus has recently launched the OnePlus Nord 2 while Huawei has also debuted the new P50 series of flagship phones. However, with Huawei banned from using Google services thanks to the US trade ban, the company's phones aren't as successful now as their hardware demands. 

What 5G phones are coming out soon?

Every flagship phone is now a 5G phone. We are expecting more new phones from OnePlus, Nokia, Xiaomi and other names over the coming months. 

There are also numerous high-end foldable devices on the way, too, as well as the Google Pixel 6 and 6 Pro. Looking ahead into 2022, there will be the next Galaxy, the S22. 

We'll update this list with more handsets as we hear about them. While the pandemic did appear to have an effect on some 2020 launches, this effect now seems to be over. 

What to look for when comparing 5G deals

• Look for 5G plans - If you're not buying a network plan with a 5G phone, check your existing plan is 5G-enabled with your provider. You may need to pay more in some cases.
  
• Data - Unless you are planning to use mobile data sparingly, you need to have unlimited data with 5G deals - or at least a generous data allowance like 10 or 20GB. Our experiences with 5G show that you eat through data fairly rapidly.
  
• Upfront cost - You may be better off paying more upfront for a phone or buying one outright SIM-free and then adding a 5G plan yourself.
  
• Explore cheaper alternatives - Unless you're keen to have a phone from a particular brand, shop around. The price differences between networks are quite sizeable, even for the same device.

What to look for in a 5G phone

• Are they actually 5G? - Many older devices aren't 5G. So make sure you're not being duped into choosing a 4G phone.
  
• Only the features you need - 5G phones are mostly quite expensive, so it's important to choose one that actually suits your needs rather than going for the best one on a super-expensive deal.
  
• Battery life - Look out for the battery life, since 5G phones can be a bit more thirsty in this department. It's best to go for independent assessments because manufacturers will always overstate this.
  
• Camera - It's fair to say that the cameras on all of the below phones are strong, but it's worth looking up more information and camera samples if you want to take particular styles of photos. Night Mode is a particular strength of some handsets but still a weakness of others - make sure you're getting something that you want, especially if you're paying a lot of money for a 5G device. 

The best 5G phone deals

Here we've suggested the top deals for each of the key 5G handsets currently on the market and we're adding more as big-name 5G phones continue to roll out. 

Check back as these deals will change regularly - the price widgets are dynamically populated so they'll automatically be filled with the very latest and best deals. 

Samsung Galaxy S21

Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra

Google Pixel 5

OnePlus 9

OnePlus Nord

Apple iPhone 12

Apple iPhone 13 and iPhone 13 mini

Apple iPhone 13 Pro and iPhone 13 Pro Max

Oppo Find X3 Pro

Samsung Galaxy S20 5G

Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G

Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra

Oppo Find X3 Pro

If you want to upgrade to 5G, you'll need a 5G-capable phone to access the new, higher-speed 5G networks that will become much more prevalent during the coming months. All the major manufacturers have released or announced 5G phones.

Apple was the last of the major players to get involved with a 5G handset. The iPhone 12, iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max are all 5G capable using Qualcomm 5G modems alongside Apple's fast A14 Bionic hardware that means the new devices are powerhouse performers as well as being fully 5G capable (the US models are compatible with mmWave).

• Discover the best apps for performing a 5G speed test 

As you may know, you need to have a 5G-enabled phone to use 5G technology and you'll also need to make sure your network supports it before jumping in. If you're in the UK or US, all major networks are now offering 5G in limited areas. And with second or even third-generation 5G devices now coming onto the market, meaning still-excellent models are being sold off at cheaper prices. 

What other 5G phones are on the way?

There are stacks of 5G phones debuting over the coming months. That's because every major handset launched will be 5G-capable. 

Samsung is up next with new foldable phones that we believe will be called the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3. Apple, OnePlus, Nokia and Xiaomi are also all expected to have new devices.

The new iPhone series, should be called the iPhone 13 logically, but we wonder if it will make the move to the number 14 or even 12 S. 

Huawei's current US trade ban prevents it from using Google services and apps. As such we aren't currently recommending its handsets as a viable option.

BEST 5G PHONES: OVERALL

As it does with many things, Apple took its time to get into 5G phones but has struck a fine note right away. While the iPhone 12 Pro doesn't do enough to distinguish itself from the standard iPhone 12, the Pro Max certainly does with its huge display and sheer desirability. It's a super performer too while the cameras are among the best we've seen, especially in low light. It's eye-wateringly expensive, though. 

Put simply, this is an absolute stunner. Available most of the time in either 128 and 512GB versions, this phone prioritises two things - speed and a supremely powerful quad-camera. 

It's a 6.9-inch phone with a 3,200 x 1,440 AMOLED display. There are two headline facts about the camera - firstly, there's a 100x zoom. Now we think this is more of a gimmick rather than being something truly practical. 

But one of the lenses is capable of shooting unbelievable 108 megapixel photos alongside a still-large 48 megapixel telephoto lens.

It's certainly a serious phone, based on Samsung's own Exynos 990 platform in Europe or Qualcomm's Snapdragon 865 in the US. And, for such a serious device you get serious colour options to go with it - cosmic black or cosmic grey.

Our pick for the best Android 5G phone out there currently, the Note 20 Ultra is very similar to the S20 Ultra but features the desirable S Pen stylus and bang-up to-date Qualcomm Snapdragon 865+ platform on US models (other models with Samsung's own Exynos hardware aren't so lucky). It also has probably the best display out there. It has a more pronounced (ugly) camera housing than the predecessor Note 10 but the lenses are well-balanced and a fine package. 

Best all-rounder 5G phones

The standard iPhone 12 is in many ways the pick of the new iPhone 12 range with plenty of reasons not to go for the same-sized iPhone 12 Pro - though we love the Pro Max as you can see above. The whole iPhone 12 range comes with the latest A14 Bionic platform so there's no performance limitation either (Pro has more RAM though). Available in Black, White, Red, Green, Blue, there's also the iPhone 12 mini to consider, too. 

This is 2020's key 5G phone - or rather it is until we get a 5G iPhone. The Samsung Galaxy S20 absolutely sings, with flagship power under the hood in the form of Samsung's own Exynos 990 platform in Europe and the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 in the US. 

It's not small, with a super bright 6.2-inch AMOLED display. While the more upmarket S20's have a quad camera, there are three lenses here, led by a very powerful 64 megapixel sensor. It's also capable of a 30x digital zoom. 

It's competitively priced versus other handsets - the same can't be said for others in the S20 range - and is available on some good contract deals, too. 

It's only available in a 128GB version which is a bit of a shame but if you want bigger you can always plump for the S20+ instead. 

The S20 comes in cloud pink, cloud blue and cosmic grey. 

Best budget 5G phone

Chinese phone maker Oppo has come up with something no other 5G phone has; a motorised selfie camera. Essential stuff? Absolutely not, but it does mean that the Reno 5G has a notch-free display and is great value, too. As well as that pop-up 16-megapixel front-facer for selfies and video calls, this phone – the world’s first commercially available 5G handset when it was launched in 2019 – has a 48-megapixel primary camera alongside a sensor for 10x zoom. 

Also inside this 6.6-inch phone are two nano SIM card slots to make global travel easier.

Best mid-range 5G phone

Happily Samsung’s attempt at cutting costs isn’t immediately noticeable on the Galaxy A90 5G. Its AMOLED display has a novel 20:9 aspect ratio, which makes it a very tall phone. It’s there for watching widescreen video, of course, but it could also push productivity. 

Unusually, its three-camera array drops the telephoto lens, so forget about optical close-ups. It’s also not quite as slim as or as lightweight as Samsung’s flagship phones, and it’s a little plasticky to hold, but the Galaxy A90 5G is nevertheless a great way to enter the 5G era. 

Sprint's merger with T-Mobile has been passed, so Sprint 5G is now T-Mobile 5G. 

The merger survived a legal challenge from state attorney generals citing reduced competition and potentially higher prices for consumers. 

The merger was finalised by 1 April 2020, with the Sprint brand disappearing at the start of August 2020. The merger was nearly two years in process and had been talked about for a lot longer than that, even as long ago as 2014. 

Prior to the acquisition, analysts suggested that Sprint needed the merger to happen in order to survive; it had reported significant losses and had also been losing subscribers. It lagged behind as the fourth biggest player.  

Judge Victor Marrero said in his judgement that "the overwhelming view both within Sprint and in the wider industry is that Sprint is falling farther and farther short of the targets it must hit to remain relevant as a significant competitor."

German firm Deutsche Telekom owns nearly 42% of the new T-Mobile and SoftBank around 27%. However, it seems Softbank is happy for Deutsche Telekom to be in control and will grant it proxy voting rights meaning it effectively controls the firm. 

We've outlined more about the merger and its background below. 

Sprint 5G network

Sprint's mid-band 5G network is now part of T-Mobile's 5G offering and T-Mobile has expanded its network accordingly.

Sprint is using mostly mid-band spectrum for 5G (2.5Ghz) and so the network doesn't have the blazing fast speeds of others - for now. It didn't deploy any mmWave - millimeter wave - which is what other US networks including T-Mobile are using for their high-speed services.

Sprint's network will still have fast speeds though; Sprint's 5G network tests in various US cities have shown speeds upwards of 300Mbps. 

Sprint was calling its 5G service True Mobile 5G. It's likely that Sprint is trying to say something about other networks with its message - notably AT&T's 5GE (which is, essentially, 4G LTE Advanced) and others using low-band 5G. 

mmWave has an advantage because it is able to provide faster top-line speeds, but the disadvantage is that the nodes need to be closer together - the waves just don't travel as far. That's one key advantage with using mid-band.

Like other networks, Sprint used Massive MIMO tech to increase capacity. Earlier in the year Sprints said results from early deployments show Massive MIMO is "driving a 4x average increase in capacity and speed with peak increases up to 10X over LTE".

Merger with T-Mobile

The $26 billion merger with T-Mobile was in the works for two years and was narrowly approved by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Department of Justice - who went so far as to mandate that the new combined company will need to divest some spectrum to Dish to enable it to launch a new, fourth competitor in the market. Sprint had to divest its Boost Mobile subsidiary to Dish to make this happen. 

In 2019 the merger came up against a problem; a multi-state lawsuit in an effort to block it, essentially suggesting that the efforts to reinstate a fourth player in the market through Dish don't go far enough and that the merger would mean higher prices for consumers. 

On 12 February 2020 the federal judge in the New York Court gave the merger the go-ahead. According to Fortune, the key testimony was from Dish CEO Charlie Ergen who was convincing in his ambition to create a new, fourth player in the mobile market to effectively replace Sprint. 

As well as selling spectrum to Dish, Sprint-T-Mobile will also have to host Dish as an MVNO for a time to enable it to get a mobile business off the ground while it builds its own network. 

The combined company is still known as T-Mobile - it has been dubbed "New T-Mobile" in marketing materials. It's still be the third biggest network behind Verizon and AT&T.

Prior to the merger T-Mobile had around 46 million users, with Sprint around 33 million (according to Statista). However, the Boost Mobile loss to Dish meant the loss of around 7-8 million. 

The combined company has had to promise to stick to some stringent targets. The company has to roll out a 5G service to 97 percent of the US within three years including rural areas and within six years, it has pledged to give 90 percent of the US population data speeds in excess of 100Mbps, with another 9 percent having 50Mbps. 

T-Mobile 5G phones