T-Mobile US has expanded its 600MHz Extended Range LTE service to more than 900 towns and cities across 32 states – including 120 locations previously unserved by 4G services. The cellco notes that it currently offers six 600MHz-capable smartphones, with at least twelve new devices expected to become available later in 2018.
Going forward, T-Mobile has confirmed that it will extend the 600MHz network to Puerto Rico this autumn. Neville Ray, CTO at T-Mobile, commented: ‘After the devastating hurricanes that hit Puerto Rico last year, we saw an opportunity to rebuild the network better than new – to rebuild with 5G-ready gear.’
TeleGeography notes that T-Mobile US agreed to pay USD7.99 billion for a total of 1,525 regional licences in the FCC licensing process, securing an average of 31MHz of 600MHz spectrum nationwide (50MHz in Puerto Rico). The network went live in August 2017, in Cheyenne, Wyoming.