Category: 5G
-
T-Mobile Unveils Free ‘Scam Shield’ Features Against Robocalls
Today the Un-Carrier announced a set of comprehensive protections to combat unwanted scammers from targeting mobile phones. Scam Shield is a free service to T-Mobile, Metro by T-Mobile, and Sprint customers that provides enhanced caller ID features and more, including technology built into T-Mobile’s very network. Scammer calls have been on the rise lately, especially during…
-
Verizon Will Pull Some 5G Ads Claiming Extensive Coverage
For years now Verizon has been touting it’s super fast 5G network capabilities, but it turns out not all of them are totally accurate. Now, BBB National Programs’ National Advertising Division (NAD) is confronting Verizon on some of its claims that come across as misleading to consumers. NAD recommended that Verizon stop claiming to be…
-
FCC Marks Completion of Repack Project, Clearing Way for Wireless
The Federal Communications Commission announced that the post-incentive auction transition successfully hit its July 13, 2020, deadline. While a few stations were granted deadline extensions, completing the transition means that key 600 MHz band spectrum is now open for wireless use, including emerging 5G networks. The 39-month effort was spread across 10 phases, the last…
-
AT&T Expands 5G Coverage to 28 New Markets
AT&T has announced that its 5G wireless network is now available in 28 additional markets and now reaches 179 million people. With this launch, AT&T’s wireless plans for consumers and businesses are in 355 markets in the US. AT&T has also enabled dynamic spectrum sharing (DSS) in some areas. The technology allows carriers to share…
-
Dish’s Hopes of Building Fourth 5G Network Under Scrutiny
Concerns are mounting about Dish’s plans to build a 5G wireless network to compete with AT&T, Verizon, and the newly merged T-Mobile. Originally slated for a 2023 launch, Dish’s emergence as a fourth wireless competitor was a key component of the federal government’s approval of the recent T-Mobile/Sprint merger. However, the ongoing coronavirus and its…
-
5G: How Much Do Consumers Know, How Much Do They Care?
The term “5G” has been floating around for some time now, with major telcos investing heavily into network upgrades and marketing campaigns focused on the next-gen wireless standard. And while a recent consumer survey suggests many are aware of the overall bullet points — faster speeds, better coverage — excitement levels haven’t exactly spiked so…
-
Regional ISP WilloWeb Deploys its First 5G Fixed Wireless Access in San Jose
We’re well into 2020 and it’s clear 5G is set to have a big year, with several major companies continuing to tout their expansion efforts. But smaller, more regional companies are also getting in on the 5G game, including California’s WilloWeb. The company focuses on the San Jose area of the state and it recently…
-
FCC Scores $4.5B in ‘Largest Ever’ Spectrum Auction
The Federal Communications Commission announced today it’s concluded bidding in what’s known as Auction 103, bringing in about $4.5 billion in net proceeds. The auction included over 14,000 licenses in the Upper 37 GHz, 39 GHz, and 47 GHz bands — part of the “high-band” spectrum the FCC has its eyes on for 5G expansion.…
-
Commission Updates Guidelines to Prep for 5G Expansion
An international commission issued updated exposure guidelines aimed at keeping pace with the ongoing rollout of 5G networks, tweaking recommendations it started issuing back in 1998. In a press release this week, the International Commission on Non‐Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) discussed its effort to modernize its guidelines to account for 5G, especially its use of…
-
AT&T Targets Early 2022 for 3G Sunset
While 5G may be grabbing all the attention and headlines these days, mobile carriers have been working on plans to move away from older networks and, they hope, convert existing customers to their latest tech. Case in point: the venerable 3G network, which came online in the US in the early 2000s. Various companies are…