Starting October 1, some residents of Houston, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, and Sacramento will be able to buy into the new wireless capabilities.
The news: Verizon’s new program, called 5G Home, is the first commercial launch of 5G in any capacity. The company says internet speeds will average around 300 megabits per second and peak around 1 gigabit per second. This is comparable to the speeds offered by Verizon Fios, which range from 100 to 500 megabits per second. Existing Verizon wireless customers can expect to pay $50 a month for the service; others will pay $70. You can begin signing up for the service tomorrow.
Some caveats: This is not mobile 5G. Verizon’s service is currently limited to users’ homes and doesn’t deliver speeds much faster than those offered by fiber networks. And the rollout won’t be available to everyone in these cities (residents can check if they are eligible here).
The 5G battlefield: AT&T appears to be on track to be the first network to deploy a true mobile next-generation network by the end of 2018. T-Mobile’s and Sprint’s services are likely to debut in 2019, along with Sprint’s and LG’s 5G-enabled phone. So Verizon is in the lead for now, but it may be a short-lived moment in the spotlight.
