T-Mobile activates 5G in more cities, delivers Sprint customers wider LTE access following merger

T-Mobile is quickly consolidating wireless assets won in a major merger with Sprint, and this week rolled out additions to its 5G network as it works to expand coverage to all 50 states.

Announced in a blog post on Tuesday, T-Mobile is utilizing 2.5GHz spectrum acquired in its landmark merger with Sprint to deploy 5G capabilities in parts of Philadelphia, offering customers with compatible hardware access to data transfer speeds reaching nearly 600 Mbps.

A similar rollout is planned for parts of New York, which will become the first city to be serviced by low-band, mid-band and mmWave 5G technologies, simultaneously. The "Un-carrier" is also activating 5G network nodes in Detroit, St. Louis and Columbus, Ohio.

T-Mobile's 5G strategy is based on a "layer cake" approach to network connectivity. Broad swaths of land will be served by a base comprised of 600MHz low-band spectrum, effective at carrying signals to remote locales and deep into buildings, while mid-band spectrum will cover large metro regions. The top of the "cake," fast mmWave technology that offers blazing transfer speeds at the cost of transmission distance and object penetration, is to see limited use in densely populated urban areas.

"Connectivity is more important than ever today, and the challenging time we're all facing shows just how critical 5G for All is," said Neville Ray, T-Mobile President of Technology. "While our amazing team safely works to keep people across the country connected to work, school and family, we aren't slowing down on building out the broad and deep network that only this combined company can deliver.

Later this month, Sprint customers with Samsung's Galaxy S 20 5G will be able to access T-Mobile's 5G network that covers more than 5,000 cities and towns across the country. Further, the wireless provider is allowing Sprint subscribers to roam on its LTE network, doubling the number of available cell sites.

Finally, T-Mobile will add the OnePlus 8 5G to its lineup on April 29, brining the number of available 5G-capable handsets up to seven.

T-Mobile flipped the switch on its 5G network in December with an emphasis on low-band spectrum rollout.

Apple is widely expected to launch a 5G smartphone in iPhone 12 later this year.