UScellular Reveals its Mid-Band 5G Plans

UScellular announced that it will roll out 5G service using mid-band spectrum by the end of 2023. The company previously rolled out 5G service in some areas using millimeter wave spectrum, which supports the highest speeds but over relatively short distances, and in low-band spectrum, which provides excellent coverage but relatively low speeds. Mid-band spectrum is widely considered to provide the optimum mixture of coverage and speed for 5G. "By adding mid-band spectrum to its low and mmWave 5G networks, UScellular can offer its customers increased speeds, expanded coverage and reliable service at home and on the go," said the company. UScellular’s mid-band holdings include spectrum in the C-band, which it won in an auction that closed in February 2021 and in the 3.45 GHz band auction, which closed earlier in 2022. The company said it will use Nokia AirScale equipment for its mid-band 5G deployments. The deployment “builds on Nokia’s existing support for UScellular’s 5G standalone (SA) core network and RAN for both low-band and mmWave 5G,” according to the company.