At a media event announcing its new payment plans and 4G network on Tuesday, T-Mobile was certain to point out that it will be the only U.S. carrier offering high-fidelity voice transmissions with the iPhone 5.
The iPhone will arrive April 12 on T-Mobile's network, along with the iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, and a range of other smartphones. Making the announcement Tuesday, T-Mobile CEO John Legere pointed out that the iPhone 5 will support the carrier's branded "HD Voice" calling — a feature that T-Mobile took nationwide earlier this year.
HD Voice, T-Mobile says, is a dramatic improvement over current in-call voice quality standards. The feature requires that both parties on a call use a T-Mobile 4G smartphone and be connected to either the carrier's 3G, 4G HSPA+, or 4G LTE network.
Legere, calling the iPhone's appearance on T-Mobile the start of a "long relationship," said that Apple's phone will have access to 50 percent more bandwidth on T-Mobile's network than it will on AT&T. The iPhone 5 on T-Mobile will work across all three layers of the carrier's network, including the 1900MHz spectrum, AWS spectrum, and LTE.
Legere pointed out other benefits he said T-Mobile customers will get. Compared to a two-year contract with AT&T, T-Mobile customers will save $1,000 over the same period, according to Legere.
The iPhone 5 will arrive on T-Mobile's network on April 12 for $99 with 20 additional monthly payments of $20. Apple's iPhone 4 and iPhone 4S will also be available, but only select markets and channels.