When BT launched 5G plans in November, they were only available for customers of Halo, a premium broadband service. Now they’re available to all.
BT’s 5G service is available in 50 UK cities – including London, Birmingham, Manchester, Edinburgh, Cardiff, Belfast, Glasgow, Newcastle, Leeds, Liverpool, Hull, Sunderland, Sheffield, Nottingham, Leicester, Coventry, Bristol, Wakefield and Wolverhampton – and is compatible with a range of 5G smartphones from vendors such as Samsung, Huawei and OnePlus.
Data
Four 5G plans have been launched, starting at £45 per month, including handset and data allowances between 6GB and 100GB. Halo customers receive double data or unlimited data for the 100GB package.
Pete Oliver, Managing Director of Marketing, BT Consumer, said: “Our BT Halo customers have been some of the first to enjoy 5G in the UK, and we’re now giving all of our customers the chance to get superfast, reliable mobile connections even in the busiest places.
“Whether you’re watching HD TV or sport on the go, or FaceTiming your family on the way home, 5G makes a huge difference to everyday experiences and opens up even more exciting new experiences like seamless augmented reality and HD mobile gaming.”
5G costs
BT recently reported ‘below expectation’ results for the third quarter.
The operator said revenue was impacted by regulation, competition and declines in legacy products.
BT has also estimated that the decision to allow Huawei a limited presence in non-core elements of UK 5G infrastructure could cost £500 million over the next five years. A large expense will be replacing the 4G Huawei infrastructure which BT had intended to upgrade with Huawei 5G kit.
Philip Jansen, CEO, BT Group, said at the end of January, “BT delivered results slightly below our expectations for the third quarter of the year, but we remain on track to meet our outlook for the full year.”