EE launches next phase of 4G for the world's fastest smartphones

• EE begins rollout of unique network capability to get the best out of the latest smartphones, and improve capacity and speeds for all customers.
• Commercially available HTC M10 hits download speed of more than 360Mbps live on the EE network.
• World-leading speeds coming to London, Birmingham and Manchester in 2016 – only on EE.

EE today unveiled the next phase of its 4G network, allowing customers to get the best performance from the world's fastest smartphones, and keeping the UK at the cutting edge of mobile technology.

This unique layer of extra capacity in the EE 4G network will keep all smartphones faster on EE than on any other UK network, and will make the latest 'Cat 9' devices among the fastest smartphones in the world.

Cat 9, and the next phase of superfast smartphones

Cat 9 is the latest capability in new smartphones including the HTC M10, Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge and the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 when it is available. This is the latest advance in data download speed after Cat 6, and uses 4G+ or ‘LTE-A’ technology.

The lab-based maximum a Cat 9 device is 450Mbps, and the HTC M10 just achieved a real-world speed of over 360Mbps on the EE network at Wembley Stadium. These are the fastest speeds that customers can achieve in the UK, equal to the fastest speeds anywhere in the world, and this is only possible in the UK on EE.

Rolling out 4G+

To support Cat 6 devices, EE has already enabled the first stage of its 4G+ (LTE-A) network, which uses two blocks of mobile spectrum, in more than 150 towns and cities across the UK. The next phase to support Cat 9 devices will enable access to a third block of spectrum for high-speed 4G services on over 500 sites across these towns and cities by the end of 2017. The high-speed, high-capacity network is already live in Wembley Stadium today, and will be activated on sites in central London this year starting in east London’s Tech City, with further sites being enabled in the UK's busiest cities in 2016 including Birmingham and Manchester throughout 2017.

EE CEO Marc Allera said:

“There’s no point having the latest smartphones on a network that can’t support the top speeds the device is capable of. We’ve invested in our network to ensure that all of our customers get the most out of the amazing smartphones they have, and can keep up with the highest speeds that the latest devices offer. With 4G+ now supporting Cat 9 devices, plus Wi-Fi Calling and 4G Calling, customers on EE will continue to get more from their new smartphone than on any other network in the UK.”

Unique ability to support world-leading speeds on Cat 9 devices

To enable world-leading speeds, EE combines 20MHz of 1800MHz spectrum with 35MHz of 2600MHz spectrum to create 55MHz of spectrum deployed for 4G services. This provides the highest capacity of any UK operator through the most spectrum deployed for 4G services – resulting in less congestion and faster speeds than other operators.

Continued 4G rollout

EE is continuing to switch on 4G in new areas. Today, EE's 4G network covers more than two thirds of the UK landmass – more than any other network – and is aiming to reach 95% by 2020.

To ensure the best possible coverage and call quality for customers, EE has invested in WiFi Calling and 4G Calling (VoLTE), and is switching on more than 3,500 sites with low frequency 800MHz spectrum for improved indoor coverage.