Verizon announced it will launch mobile 5G service in Chicago and Minneapolis next month, which will be accompanied by updated data plans for post paid customers.

The operator will initially offer a single 5G-compatible device: the Moto Z3, which will connect to the network via the Moto Mod. The latter will be available to order from 14 March.

Additional 5G devices from Samsung, LG and others will be offered at a later date, a company representative told Mobile World Live.

Unlimited 5G data will be offered as a $10 add-on to customers on Verizon’s range of unlimited tariffs.

In a statement, Verizon CTO Kyle Malady hailed 5G as a technology which will “change the way we live, work, learn and play”, and reiterated the operator’s plan to extend mobile access to more than 30 cities by the end of 2019.

Standards
The two cities will be the first to access the network for mobile services: Verizon already introduced fixed wireless 5G in October 2018 in Houston, Los Angeles, Sacramento and Indianapolis, but that was for home broadband.

Though the latter relied on an early version of the 5G standard developed by the 5G Technology Forum (TF), Verizon said its new mobile 5G network and all its 5G services going forward will adhere to 3GPP standards.

Both the fixed and mobile networks are built on Verizon’s 5G Ultra Wideband technology, which uses mmWave spectrum. When customers move outside its 5G coverage area, the Moto Mod will hand off the signal to Verizon’s 4G LTE network.