Where Can You Get AT&T 5G?

Everyone is racing to be the first carrier with true 5G technology lit up all over the country. 5G is significantly quicker than 4G LTE, but there are still some roadblocks to it. AT&T is still, as quickly as possible, lighting up the nation with 5G; however, 5G isn’t so popular from a consumer standpoint.

Right now, current smartphones do not support 5G networks. Consumers have to purchase 5G models of smartphones to use 5G, which isn’t super attractive right now because of how small of a footprint 5G has. On top of that, 5G smartphones are significantly more expensive than regular 4G LTE smartphone models.

Ultimately, it’s just a slow transition. In fact, AT&T CEO and Chairman Randall Stephenson said we’re looking at three to five year timeline for full 5G on AT&T:

“Over time, three- to five-year time horizon, unequivocally, 5G will serve as a fixed broadband replacement product,” and that he’s “very convicted that that will be the case. We are obviously on a standards-based path that is mobile first.”

But, if you want to know more about 5G, what 5G Evolution is, and when true 5G is going to launch all over the country for AT&T, follow along with us below! We’ve got the scoop right here.

What about 5G Evolution?

AT&T is aiming to have nationwide 5G available by early 2020, but at this rate, it’s going to be a whole lot longer than that. That said, the network has launched 5G Evolution in multiple cities, at least to start giving folks a taste of what 5G will be like. In theory, speeds should reach as much as 400Mbps on 5G Evolution, but reality ends up being a whole lot slower than that. Sometimes as low as 40Mbps.

In real-world testing, that’s a lot slower than 4G LTE technology. And some of the problems is that it’s just tricky showing people what 5G looks like on phones that aren’t 5G capable.

These are the cities that 5G Evolution is available in right now:

• Atlanta
• Austin
• Boston
• Bridgeport
• Buffalo
• Chicago
• Detroit
• Fresno
• Greenville
• Hartford
• Houston
• Indianapolis
• Los Angeles
• Louisville
• Memphis
• Nashville
• New Orleans
• Oklahoma City
• Pittsburgh
• San Antonio
• San Diego
• San Francisco
• Tulsa
• Sacramento

Where can you get AT&T 5G right now?

You can get real 5G technology in only twenty cities right now. The 5G you get in these cities is not 5G Evolution, so speeds in the following cities should be a lot quicker than even 4G LTE. Here they are:

• Los Angeles
• San Diego
• San Francisco
• San Jose
• Jacksonville
• Orlando
• Atlanta
• Indianapolis
• Louisville
• New Orleans
• Charlotte
• Raleigh
• Oklahoma City
• Nashville
• Austin
• Dallas
• San Antonio
• Houston
• Waco

AT&T is working on lighting up more cities with real 5G technology soon; however, we’re a very long way off from all of the United States being connected up to the new wireless technology.

What about AT&T 5G Plans?

Pricing is going to be increasing when 5G fully launches as well. According to a report from USA Today, an AT&T spokesperson told the publication that “5G brings capabilities that are going to cause us to think differently about pricing.” So, besides purchasing a 5G-compatible smartphone, you’re going to be looking at an increase in the mobile plan side, too.

So, if you’re hopping on a mobile plan, AT&T will be offering 5G services for a fair fee per month, with a 15GB per month data cap. It sounds like this is included in the family plans, but after you exceed your allotment, you’re slowed down to likely 3G.

AT&T does offer a mobile 5G plan if you’re looking for the Internet on the go. You’ll need to have 5G in your city, but you will also need the NETGEAR Nighthawk 5G Mobile Hotspot. There’s no annual commitment, but obviously, it is relatively pricey to get into.

The carrier is also looking at letting consumers, in supported cities and regions, use a Fixed Wireless Access Service to bring 5G Internet to homes. This is currently in the trial phase, with testing presently happening in South Bend IN, Kalamazoo MI, Austin TX, and Waco TX. So far, speeds in testing are looking good, at upwards of 1Gbps, and around 20 ms in latency.

Verdict

As you can see, 5G is on a pretty slow rollout right now. Carriers are racing to get 5G out as fast as possible, and they’re trying to cut corners from a marketing standpoint and introduce things like 5G Evolution, but it isn’t necessarily working. 5G Evolution is slower than even 4G LTE in most cases. In theory, it’s supposed to be quicker, but in reality, it’s significantly slower.

Unfortunately, that’s just something that we’re going to have to deal with until AT&T starts lighting up significant portions of the United States with the new wireless technology. And unfortunately, that’s likely going to be relatively slow, since even 5G phones themselves have yet to catch on.

Are you looking forward to seeing AT&T’s 5G technology in more cities? What’s been your experience with 5G so far? Let us know in the comments section below — we’d love to hear from you!