The era of 5G smartphones is coming. And Sprint seems to be determined to be a leader in this approaching age.
America’s fourth-biggest carrier just announced it has parented up with LG to bring US customers their first 5G phone. The device is scheduled to land on the market in the first half of 2019. Following the launch of Sprint’s 5G network at the beginning of the year.
Sprint’s initial 5G markets include Los Angeles, Atlanta, New York City and Houston. Which were chosen due to their high traffic and their spectrum holdings.
The press release doesn’t shed much light on additional details regarding the smartphone. Sprint only says the LG device will be a beautifully-designed advanced 5G smartphone capable of offering blazing fast speed and ultra-reliable wireless.
Sprint wants to give the US its first 5G smartphone
The handset will be able to complete full-length HD movie downloads within seconds rather than minutes. On top of that, we can expect it to play graphics-heavy videos and high-speed games without the usual hiccups.
Sprint’s director of product development John Tudhope also revealed the LG phone will be compatible with T-Mobile, but only on the carrier’s existing 4G network (via Reuters).
The price of the phone and the exact launch date will be announced at a later date, the press release said.
Sprint and T-Mobile are currently working to persuade antitrust regulators to approve their merger, which would combine the nation’s fourth-largest and third-largest wireless carriers, respectively.
The deal would give the resulting company control over 100 million customers, edging out AT&T’s 93 million and putting it within striking distance of Verizon’s 116 million subscriber base.
It’s unclear at this point, whether the merger will happen in time for the upcoming 5G revolution. One thing’s for sure though, 5G smartphones are just around the corner!
