The good news for AT&T customers is that the carrier has recently announced that they will start getting ready to test their own 5G network. This shouldn’t really come as a surprise especially since last September, Verizon announced that they will also be testing 5G networks, so obviously AT&T has no desire to be left behind.
AT&T is expected to work with Ericsson and Intel for the equipment necessary to test the network, which they are aiming for the summer over in their Austin, Texas labs. In fact Qualcomm has recently announced a new X16 LTE radio which seems like it would be suitable for 5G use.
That being said, we expect that it will take a while before 5G becomes mainstream and becomes the new standard in mobile connectivity. According to John Donovan, AT&T’s chief strategy officer, “New experiences like virtual reality, self-driving cars, robotics, smart cities and more are about to test networks like never before. 5G will help make them a reality.”