Airtel to launch 5G services in a month, 4G SIM can work on 5G phones: Report
Airtel will make 5G service available in metro cities by December this year, while pan India availability will only be possible by the end of 2023.
Telecom operator Airtel has confirmed that it will launch 5G services within a month. Along with this, Airtel has also disclosed that the older 4G SIM will work in 5G smartphones as it is already compatible with offering the 5G services, a report by the Hindustan Times sister website Live Hindustan stated.
According to the report, the Airtel chief executive officer (CEO) Gopal Vittal said that its existing 4G SIM is already 5G enabled and customers only need to upgrade to a 5G smartphone. If you have an 5G supported smartphone, then there is no need to change the SIM to get the benefit of 5G service, Vittal added.
ALSO READ: Is your smartphone 5G-enabled? Follow these steps to find out
How to upgrade old 4G sim to 5G
The 4G sim card can easily be upgraded to support 5G service. If your smartphone is 5G compatible, then it can access the 5G network with you just changing settings or getting an exclusive 5G sim card.
After 5G service is launched, if you are a subscriber of the service, follow the following steps to upgrade the SIM.
Go to the Settings tab and then open Connections or Mobile networks. If your handset is 5G supportable, apart from 4G or LTE, there will also be an option to choose 5G. Selecting this mode will make your smartphone ready to connect to the 5G network.
According to the report, the Airtel CEO said that the 5G network will be 20 to 30 times faster than 4G. Airtel’s 5G service will also be able to be used while traveling abroad.
Airtel 5G will be launched across India by next year
The CEO of Airtel has clarified that the company is planning to launch 5G services in a phased manner across India. Airtel will make 5G service available in Metro cities by December this year, while pan India availability will only be possible by the end of 2023. Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai could be the first cities to be included in the list. The company plans to provide 5G services across India.
This announcement comes after Reliance Jio revealed in its 2022 general meeting, the plan to bring 5G services in select cities by Diwali this year. This will bring a fierce competition between the two Indian telecom giants in the 5G network segment over the price, connectivity and speed.
