Sprint and LG Working Together to Bring First 5G Smartphone to U.S. in First Half 2019

Sprint (NYSE: S) today confirmed a significant wireless milestone as it works with LG Electronics USA to deliver the first mobile 5G smartphone in the U.S. in the first half of 2019. Sprint customers will be among the first in the world to experience the incredible speed, reliability and mobility of 5G on this innovative handset built for the country’s first mobile 5G network when it launches in first half of next year. Device specifications and exact timing will be announced later.

"Sprint is moving fast on the road to 5G and we are thrilled to announce the first 5G smartphone with the innovative team at LG," said Dr. John Saw, Sprint chief technology officer. "LG has done tremendous work developing technical designs that enable us to be among the first movers in mobile 5G. Today’s announcement brings us one step closer to putting a beautifully-designed advanced 5G smartphone in our customer’s hands. And we’re excited to revolutionize the mobile industry as we dramatically improve the way Sprint customers work, play and stay connected."

5G promises new levels of innovation and progress to connect people, places and the billions of things Sprint customers do with blazing fast speed and ultra-reliable wireless. Customers will experience the shift from 4G to 5G with full-length HD movie downloads in seconds instead of minutes. Graphic-heavy videos and high speed games will play without delays, hiccups or lag-time.

"LG has been working side-by-side with Sprint for nearly 20 years, and we are looking forward to expanding this partnership with 5G," said William Cho, LG Electronics North America President and CEO.  Building on LG’s legacy of innovation, our teams are enthusiastic about partnering with Sprint’s 5G experts to bring next-generation mobile to market in the U.S., while continuing to evolve LG’s best-in-class design elements for Sprint customers."

Delivering 5G Innovation

Sprint recently announced plans to launch its 5G mobile network in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, New York City, Phoenix and Washington, D.C. Additional markets will be announced as Sprint continues the roll-out of its blazing-fast mobile 5G service.

Massive MIMO technology is a key part of Sprint’s award-winning 5G strategy. Sprint’s first 5G-ready Massive MIMO cell sites are capable of delivering up to 10 times the capacity of current LTE systems, significantly increasing data speeds for more customers in high-traffic locations. With Massive MIMO at the foundation of Sprint’s Gigabit LTE and 5G service, Sprint can keep meeting its customers’ demand for unlimited data and high-bandwidth applications, such as television in high definition and virtual reality.

Additional devices designed for Sprint’s new 5G network will be shared at a later time. To follow Sprint’s Next-Gen Network build out and its road to 5G, visit http://newsroom.sprint.com/network/.

Source: Sprint media announcement