Verizon, Sprint 5G phones on sale
High-speed battle is set to accelerate in cities
Sprint is about to take the plunge on its first speedy 5G-capable smartphone, announcing plans on the very day Verizon started selling Samsung’s first 5G phone in the U.S.
The No. 4 wireless carrier in the U.S. said on Thursday that the LG V50 ThinQ 5G will be available May 31, initially to customers in Sprint’s first four 5G markets – Atlanta, Dallas, Houston and Kansas City, Missouri. The availability date suggests that the end of May is when Sprint will flip on the switch in those 5G markets.
Sprint also announced that the HTC 5G Hub for home broadband also will be available on that date.
Customers can start preordering both devices Friday.
The next generation of wireless, of course, promises speeds and network responsiveness far zippier compared with today’s prevalent 4G LTE networks.
Sprint plans to expand its 5G network to Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, Phoenix and Washington, D.C., over the new few weeks.
For a limited time, the LG phone will cost $24 per month with $0 down under the Sprint Flex lease plan, half the regular price, the company says.
HTC’s 5G Hub for home broadband will cost $12.50 per month. It can be activated with 100GB of high-speed data for $60 per month.
Verizon Samsung 5G
Sprint’s LG V50 ThinQ 5G will be available May 31 to customers in Atlanta, Dallas, Houston and Kansas City, Missouri.
Under Sprint’s Unlimited Premium plan for the phone, you’ll get unlimited data, talk and text nationwide, plus Hulu, Amazon Prime, Twitch Prime, Tidal HiFi and 100GB of LTE mobile hotspot. The cost is $80 per month for a single line, or $20 more than you pay for Sprint’s basic plan.
Sprint also is collaborating with Hatch and offering a free three-month subscription to the Hatch Premium cloud gaming service.
The LG V50 ThinQ 5G features a 6.4inch OLED display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor, three rear cameras and two on the front, plus the promise of an all-day battery.
Meanwhile, the HTC Hub is a home media center that can replace your WiFi router. Sprint is a distant challenger to Verizon, which earlier in the day launched the Samsung Galaxy S10 5G. Customers who purchase the phone today can get $650 off the price, Verizon says.
Verizon already has launched a 5G network in Chicago and Minneapolis, but the coverage so far in both cities has been extremely limited.
Verizon plans to follow those markets with 20 other U.S. cities in 2019: Atlanta; Boston; Charlotte, North Carolina; Cincinnati; Cleveland; Columbus, Ohio; Dallas; Des Moines, Iowa; Denver; Detroit; Houston; Indianapolis; Kansas City, Missouri, Little Rock, Arkansas; Memphis, Tennessee; Phoenix; Providence, Rhode Island; San Diego; Salt Lake City and Washington, D.C.
The new 5G Galaxy, which Verizon is selling exclusively for now, has a 6.7inch AMOLED display and camera system with six lenses. It, too, promises an all-day battery, and it will be sold in two color schemes (majestic black or crown silver) and two storage options – 256GB and 512GB.
The smaller-capacity Galaxy S10 5G will cost $54.16 per month for 24 months ($1299.99 retail) on a Verizon payment plan; the 512GB model, $58.33 per month for 24 months ($1,399.99 retail).
Sprint is seeking regulatory approval for its merger with T-Mobile. AT&T is rolling out 5G mobile networks but hasn’t started selling the 5G phones that’ll be compatible on its network.