A day after launching commercial 5G services in South Africa, Vodacom has updated its coverage map showing where the ultra-fast, next-generation broadband technology is available.
The map shows coverage is extremely limited for now — Vodacom has launched the service from only 20 high sites, 18 of which are in Gauteng and two in Cape Town.
5G coverage is available in:
- Parts of Sandton, centred on the CBD, Hyde Park, parts of Craighall, and suburbs around Melrose Arch;
- Sunninghill and parts of Woodmead;
- The immediate vicinity of the Allandale Road interchange in Midrand;
- The Vodacom campus and immediate surrounds, also in Midrand;
- Parts of Centurion around Midstream Estate and Eco-Park Estate as well as the suburbs of Wierdapark and Celtisdal;
- Hatfield and Menlyn in Pretoria; and
- Century City and surrounds in Cape Town.
The network, which supports both mobile and fixed-wireless access, was built by both Liquid Telecom and by Vodacom itself, thanks to recently assigned spectrum from communications regulator Icasa.
The operator expects to expand its initial 5G roll-out as more smartphones, Wi-Fi and fixed-wireless routers become available. The current 5G network equipment deployed operates in the same frequencies that are expected to be permanently assigned through an auction later in the year, said group CEO Shameel Joosub in a statement on Monday. — (c) 2020 NewsCentral Media