Regional US wireless operator C Spire has named Brookhaven in Lincoln County and Columbus in Lowndes County as its initial 5G launch markets. Going forward, Hattiesburg, Madison, Ridgeland and parts of the Mississippi Gulf Coast are expected to receive 5G connectivity by the end of 2020. Early adopters can utilise the 5G-capable Apple iPhone 12 device, although new handsets will be introduced in 2021. The 5G rollout is part of the cellco’s USD200 million investment programme. C Spire notes that the network upgrade includes the deployment of additional Band 41 (2500MHz) spectrum via carrier aggregation (CA), as well as the introduction of twelve-layer MIMO and 256 QAM functionality.
Brian Caraway, general manager of C Spire’s wireless division, commented: ‘We’re deploying 5G at a variety of spectrums – so many customers will have a faster experience on a 5G network while others may still see the best performance on our 4G LTE deployments.’