South Korea, the country with the fastest mobile internet has just kicked off the world’s first 5G network. The service was launched ahead of the United States, Japan and China. SK Telecom together with KT and LG Uplus were expected to launch their 5G service on Friday but they have launched it earlier on Wednesday instead, just hours before Verizon’s 5G network went live.
With 5G, customers can expect up to 100 times faster speeds and it also enables better AI and VR applications with its lower latency and higher capacity. At the moment, SKT is only offering one 5G smartphone and that’s the Galaxy S10 5G which has a larger 6.7″ display and a 4,500mAh battery.
Meanwhile in the US, Verizon is offering the Moto Z3 with a 5G Moto Mod.
During the launch event, SKT has also revealed its first 5G subscribers. This include Para-swimmer, Yong Sung-Hyuk alongside Kai from EXO, Olympic medalist Kim Yu-Na and eSports player Lee Sang-Hyeok. Park Jae-won who has been a long time subscriber since 1988 was also among the first 5G subscribers on their network.
Forbes reported that SK Telecom has installed 35,000 5G base stations and this will give significant coverage for Seoul. The 5G service will be available for public subscription starting today. The telco expects a million 5G subscribers by end of 2019.
