U.S. wireless carrier Sprint has joined AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile with an announcement for its upcoming Samsung 5G smartphone. Without confirming any specifics of the device itself, the carrier said that it will be launched this summer as its 5G network opens up.
While the device in question doesn’t yet have an official name, all signs point to the 5G Galaxy S10. Samsung is known to be developing a 5G Galaxy S10 for some time now. The model number for the device was spotted last month.
Dual-mode connectivity to Sprint’s LTE and 5G network
Sprint plans to launch its mobile 5G network in the first half of 2019. As part of the rollout, nine U.S. cities – Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., New York City and Phoenix will initially get the next-gen mobile network. The 5G Samsung smartphone will also be launched simultaneously, though the company hasn't yet specified the exact time.
Sprint says that the Samsung device will offer “dual-mode” connectivity to both its LTE and 5G networks. The device will support connectivity over 2.5 GHz spectrum, 1.9 GHz spectrum (band 25), 800 MHz spectrum (band 26), and other LTE bands. As for other features, the phone is expected to house a total of six cameras and may come with an ability to wirelessly charge other phones.
5G promises new levels of super-fast and ultra-reliable wireless connectivity and the 5G Galaxy S10 will be well equipped to complement it. The Snapdragon-powered variant of the phone is likely to ship with the Snapdragon X50 5G NR modem, while there also will be an Exynos-powered 5G variant. Samsung is expected to launch the device at the Mobile World Congress in February. The company should start shipping the phone in the US the following month.