Free announced on Wednesday that it is the first operator to offer 5G 3.5 GHz Standalone (SA or autonomous 5G) on its network throughout France. This cutting-edge radio technology will theoretically allow even faster surfing for more people simultaneously since an antenna should offer several gigabits of bandwidth.
Xavier Niel’s operator! which reportedly has the largest 5G mobile network in France with more than 20!000 sites in service! including 6!950 3.5 GHz sites! covers nearly 95% of the French population in around 10!500 municipalities. By deploying 5G SA on 3.5 GHz frequencies! Free is positioning itself as a pioneer in exploiting the full potential of this new-generation technology! according to a press release .
A fully dedicated infrastructure
Unlike 5G NSA (Non-Standalone Access) which relies on existing 4G infrastructures! 5G SA uses fully dedicated and independent equipment. This allows to fully exploit the capabilities of 5G! paving the way for zalo database new tailor-made services and applications in various fields such as industry! health! education and entertainment.
For businesses and the public sector! 5G SA offers interesting opportunities thanks to its specific performances! in particular with network slicing. Free Pro! the entity dedicated to the operator’s Business market! will thus be able to offer new innovative services! taking advantage of the optimized latency and high speeds of this technology.
VoNR! a first in France
In addition to 5G SA! Free is also innovating by internal and external conversations: a perfect duo launching VoNR (Voice over New Radio)! becoming the first operator to offer this technology in France. VoNR enables voice communication to be supported directly on the 5G network! offering significant advantages such as faster call setup! better voice quality and increased battery life for smartphones.
To benefit from these new features! Free 5G Plan subscribers will not have phone number list o to pay any additional costs. All they will need is a compatible phone and to activate the option in their Subscriber Area. Free has anticipated the launch of 5G SA by already offering a range of compatible terminals. These include a selection of Samsung smartphones.