EE mobile customers in 19 towns and cities across the UK are set to benefit from a mobile network upgrade that could improve 5G signal and speeds up and down the country.
The mobile provider has announced it is bringing its 5G standalone technology to several new locations, which is a kind of advanced 5G mobile network designed to improve mobile internet speeds.
These 5G standalone networks bring “major upgrades” according to EE, and have more powerful performance than networks built on top of older 4G technology. The firm says its standalone upgrades bring faster download and upload speeds and improve network performance, particularly in dense town and city centres and stadiums.
Towns and cities getting this new EE tech by the end of March are Altrincham, Blackburn, Bridgend, Caerphilly, Corby, Cwmbran, Doncaster, Exeter, Huddersfield, Hyde, Middlesbrough, Milton Keynes, Port Talbot, Rotherham, Sale, Sunderland, Wakefield, Walkden, Wilmslow.
These locations add to the existing locations with EE’s 5G standalone of Ashton-Under-Lyne, Barrow-in-Furness, Barry, Bath, Belfast, Birkenhead, Birmingham, Bradford, Bristol, Bury, Cardiff, Coventry, Dudley, Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Hull, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Newport, Nottingham, Sheffield, St Helens, Stockport, Swansea, Weston Super Mare, Wigan and Wolverhampton.
EE says these networks are now accessible to 28 million Brits. But not all EE customers in these places will see improvements in their 5G speeds.
Only certain models can tap into the new network tech, a full list of which can be found here.
This includes some of the newest models from the likes of Apple, Samsung, Google, Motorola, Nokia, TCL and Honor, but notably popular handsets such as the iPhone 14 and iPhone 14 Pro are not compatible.
In a change of heart, EE is now offering 5G standalone access to all new and upgrading customers taking out any EE handset plan. Previously, it only offered the upgrade to anyone on its sometimes-pricey Full Works or All Rounder plans. Access if you have a SIM only plan with EE is still restricted to these plans.
“5G standalone is giving many customers a better and more reliable mobile experience, especially in busy locations,” Malcolm Cubitt, Director of Mobile at EE.
“As we rapidly expand our network footprint to cover more than 40 percent of the UK population, we are widening its accessibility so more people can benefit – especially those looking to harness the power of cutting-edge features on the newest smartphones.”
EE said 5G standalone could provide a “smoother experience” for AI tools on the latest smartphones, including Samsung’s Galaxy AI and Google’s Gemini.
Last month, EE became the first UK network to launch a dedicated 5G standalone network for a sports venue when it switched on the tech at Wembley Stadium. Rival telco Virgin Media O2 followed suit shortly after with a similar network at Twickenham, which was recently renamed the Allianz Stadium.
