When it comes to ultra-fast 5G, it’s hard to go faster than T-Mobile — the carrier has done an amazing job building out its 5G network and, more importantly, making it available all across the United States. Their network is currently regarded as number one in 5G speeds and coverage by umlaut, but that might be about to change.
Verizon got some good news this week. In a press release, SES announced that the FCC has certified its Phase II C-band clearing and relocation initiatives.
Phase II activities included launching five new satellites to continue providing digital TV broadcasting to around 120 million homes and vital data services within the upper 200 MHz of the C-band (4000-4200 MHz). SES also repacked its C-band downlink services across the continental U.S. and relocated associated “Incumbent Earth Stations”.
Essentially, the FCC greenlit SES’ efforts to further clear C-band spectrum for 5G, and the company has quickly finished the work.
What does this mean for Verizon? With the C-band spectrum cleared, that allows Verizon to use it for more 5G. And like clockwork, it looks like that’s exactly what began happening in the past few hours.
Several Verizon users on Twitter/X (1, 2, 3, 4) started reporting increased bandwidth and vastly improved speeds within no time. Users are seeing 100 MHz and 160 MHz aggregate bandwidth reception on their phones, as well as download speeds of up to one gigabit over 5G.
Verizon was ready ahead of time for this news. They have C-band antennas across the country already in use, and the company is essentially flipping a switch on each one to increase the bandwidth each one can use.
The company is actively in the process of enabling the new frequencies, and the rollout is reportedly happening in waves. A number of Verizon users should expect a notable improvement in bandwidth within no time.
Overall, this could mean T-Mobile’s reign as the leader of 5G speed could be at risk. Competition is tightening, which will ultimately result in better service for everyone, and that’s a good thing. Time will tell if T-Mobile’s recent 4x Carrier Aggregation deployment will be enough to keep up with the sudden overnight threat of Verizon.
