Despite renewed drama surrounding the launch of C-Band 5G, AT&T's expanded wireless service is indeed launching today, though in a scaled-back fashion.
Look for AT&T's C-Band 5G service "in limited parts of eight metro areas across the US," the carrier said this morning. "It will grow daily on our way to reaching 200 million people by the end of 2023 with this new spectrum." Those markets are:
- Dallas/Fort Worth
- Houston
- Austin
- Chicago
- Detroit
- Jacksonville
- Orlando
- Miami
You'll need a 5G phone to tap into C-Band spectrum; these devices will work on AT&T:
- iPhone 12
- iPhone 12 mini
- iPhone 12 Pro
- iPhone 12 Pro Max
- iPhone 13
- iPhone 13 mini
- iPhone 13 Pro
- iPhone 13 Pro Max
- Galaxy A13 5G
- Galaxy S21 5G
- Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G
- Galaxy S21+ 5G
- Galaxy Z Flip3 5G
- Galaxy Z Fold3 5G
- Galaxy S21 FE 5G
- Pixel 6
- Pixel 6 Pro
The launch of C-Band spectrum has been twice delayed, first from Dec. 5 to Jan. 5, and then again for another two weeks, due to concerns from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the airlines. They say a C-Band rollout will affect the performance of planes' altimeters, which measure altitudes, particularly in bad weather.
Earlier this month, the FAA published a list of 50 airports around which it wanted Verizon and AT&T to create "5G buffer" zones as they roll out their C-Band networks. Yesterday, AT&T said in a statement that it had "voluntarily agreed to temporarily defer turning on a limited number of towers around certain airport runways." Verizon made a similar pledge.
In a statement, President Biden said the move "will avoid potentially devastating disruptions to passenger travel, cargo operations, and our economic recovery, while allowing more than 90% of wireless tower deployment to occur as scheduled."
The carriers, however, argue that federal agencies had more than enough time to voice concerns about their C-Band rollouts, and need to knock it off. "We are frustrated by the FAA's inability to do what nearly 40 countries have done, which is to safely deploy 5G technology without disrupting aviation services, and we urge it do so in a timely manner," AT&T said yesterday.