Skip to main content

High-speed coverage in the U.K. is worse than Peru, Albania, and Panama

uk 4g internet romania acer liquid zest and 3g
Andy Boxall/Digital Trends
In a new report designed to shake up the British government and encourage it to divert more funds and energy into improving the country’s mobile infrastructure, a national commission ranked 4G access in the U.K. as 54th in the world. With British mobile users only able to access 4G connections about 53 percent of the time, this makes its network weaker than Panama, Peru, Albania, and Romania.

The National Infrastructure Commission was set up earlier in 2016 to investigate how viable it would be for the U.K. to become a world leader in 5G internet access. However, the report did not offer a positive outlook, suggesting existing 4G infrastructure was far behind other developed nations.

While the report concluded that developing a strong, reliable 5G data network would be important for Britain’s future, the caveats of what would be required to make that a reality, were lengthy.

For starters, the commission believes that a politician should act as a “digital champion,” taking the issue in hand and focusing on the steps necessary to bring about a widely available 5G network. It also charged the government and communication regulatory body Ofcom to instill a minimum service obligation to all parts of the U.K., so that no matter where consumers are, they can access basic services like texting and talking.

These should be in place as soon as possible, but no later than 2025, the commissioned warned.

Coverage for higher speed internet access must also be improved, especially along key rail travel roots and city centers, where it noted there were still considerable dropouts in service availability.

Although the current state of high-speed wireless internet of the U.K. is rather dire, the commission did have hope for the future. The chair of the commission, Andrew Adonis, said 5G was an opportunity for the U.K. to “start again,” and get ahead of other countries. However, he cautioned that to do so the government would need to “act now.”

Doing so he said, would usher in a new age of digital prosperity in the U.K., preparing it for connected vehicles, the internet of things and a new generation of small businesses who could take advantage of easily accessible, high-speed internet.

Jon Martindale
Jon Martindale is the Evergreen Coordinator for Computing, overseeing a team of writers addressing all the latest how to…
Verizon 5G home internet service: Coverage, speeds, and plans
Verizon 5G Super Bowl

The major 5G carriers are all rolling out 5G, and Verizon was arguably the first to start doing so. It started with pockets of mmWave coverage in some major cities and has since adopted Sub-6 coverage for its nationwide 5G network. But the carrier was also the first to roll out another 5G-related service: 5G home internet.

Setting up 5G home internet basically involves getting a new kind of router that gets its service from 5G instead of from a cable and then converts that signal into a Wi-Fi network for your home devices. As mentioned, Verizon was among the first to roll out such a service.

Read more
AT&T just made it a lot easier to upgrade your phone
AT&T Storefront with logo.

Do you want to upgrade your phone more than once a year? What about three times a year? Are you on AT&T? If you answered yes to those questions, then AT&T’s new “Next Up Anytime” early upgrade program is made for you. With this add-on, you’ll be able to upgrade your phone three times a year for just $10 extra every month. It will be available starting July 16.

Currently, AT&T has its “Next Up” add-on, which has been available for the past several years. This program costs $6 extra per month and lets you upgrade by trading in your existing phone after at least half of it is paid off. But the new Next Up Anytime option gives you some more flexibility.

Read more
Motorola is selling unlocked smartphones for just $150 today
Someone holding the Moto G Stylus 5G (2024).

Have you been looking for phone deals but don’t want to spend a ton of money on flagship devices from Apple and Samsung? Have you ever considered investing in an unlocked Motorola? For a limited time, the company is offering a $100 markdown on the Motorola Moto G 5G. It can be yours for just $150, and your days and nights of phone-shopping will finally be over!

Why you should buy the Motorola Moto G 5G
Powered by the Snapdragon 480+ 5G CPU and 4GB of RAM, the Moto G delivers exceptional performance across the board. From UI navigation to apps, games, and camera functions, you can expect fast load times, next to no buffering, and smooth animations. You’ll also get up to 128GB of internal storage that you’ll be able to use for photos, videos, music, and any other mobile content you can store locally. 

Read more