Australia-based Optus turned on its first 5G mmWave sites in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane using the 800MHz of 26GHz spectrum acquired in an auction last month.

The new sites cover four locations in Sydney, and one each in Melbourne and Brisbane: Optus stated more will be added in the coming weeks.

Lambo Kanagaratnam, MD of networks, said it has been testing the new band for “many months”, adding “mmWave is set to blow current mobile and home internet speeds out of the water, with the potential for multi-gigabit speeds which is much faster than what Australians are used to getting today”.

Optus has more than 1,200 total 5G sites including the mmWave sites, and more than 1 million compatible devices on its network.

Matt Williams, MD of marketing and revenue, said “demand from our customers for 5G capable devices has surged in recent months, with eight out of ten handsets” sold compatible with the technology.

Optus secured mmWave licences in 116 blocks across the country for AUD226.2 million ($175.6 million) in the country’s first auction of the spectrum.

The operator launched a dual-band 5G network in Sydney on the 2300MHz and 3500MHz bands in early 2020.