This week Canada’s major wireless carriers announced the rollout of their 3500 MHz 5G spectrum.
Rogers kicked it off by announcing the new spectrum launched in Nanaimo, B.C., showing some love for Western Canada, but as of today, the company confirmed with iPhone in Canada it also has also started rolling out to Calgary, Edmonton, Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto and Vancouver.
Bell followed to say it would launch its 3500 MHz 5G spectrum, marketed as “5G+”, soon in Toronto.
Telus announced today it is deploying its 3500 MHz 5G spectrum, also marketed as “5G+”, in Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Edmonton and Victoria.
The 3500 MHz 5G mid-band spectrum offers wider coverage, faster download speeds and more capacity for wireless networks, plus allows more applications. Previously, the 3500 MHz band was used in Canada for fixed wireless internet, but an auction in July 2021 saw $8.91 billion spent by telcos to purchase spectrum for 5G wireless instead.
A Rogers spokesperson told iPhone in Canada its new 3500 MHz 5G spectrum is available for any Infinite plan, which starts at $85 per month for 25GB of data.
Update June 20: older Infinite plans such as $75/20GB also are eligible, confirmed Rogers.
Telus and Bell are requiring $95 per month plans to use its 3500 MHz 5G spectrum. It’s unclear if these two companies will lower their entry price like Rogers, or if the latter will increase their base requirement to match its rivals.
As for compatible iPhones that support the 3500 MHz 5G band in Canada? That is the iPhone SE 3, any iPhone 12 or iPhone 13 lineup model.
If you require the fastest 5G speeds, get ready to pay for an unlimited data plan. Sub-brands such as Fido, Koodo and Virgin Plus likely won’t have 5G access anytime soon, as the telcos want subscribers to pay more for premium 5G-eligible plans.
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“François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, said “Canadians will benefit from higher-quality telecom services at competitive prices as a result of the 3500 MHz spectrum auction,” which began on June 15 and ended on July 23, 2021.” – and here we in 2022 with even HIGHER mobile prices. Canadians lose once again to the Oligopoly that is Bell/Rogers/Telus.
Confused… Quebec doesn’t have a $95 plan on Bell or Telus. So what would the price tag for them to have 3500mhz 5G?
Doesn’t this frequency need a different antenna? I’m pretty sure Iphoneincanada even did articles on this antenna only being in US iPhones.
This article seems to indicate that an iPhone 13 will get the service in Canada, but I don’t think it will.
That would be for the mmWave band, which Rogers doesn’t offer yet. In fact, the spectrum auction isn’t until 2024. There are a variety of bands used for 5G, starting at 600 MHz.
“A Rogers spokesperson told its new 3500 MHz 5G spectrum is available for any Infinite plan, which starts at $85 per month for 25GB of data.”
Ummm… My 15 GB Infinite plan costs 44.29/month. Hopefully it’s included in “any Infinite plan”. I have a Pixel 6.
We asked about legacy Infinite plans and were told “yes”. So it seems any plan that is classified as an Infinite plan will qualify.
I kinda wonder if they actually will limit the USE of 3500mhz, or simply cap the data usage. (Throttling)
I feel like it would be simpler in implementation to cap the bandwidth (the way Telus is already advertising).
But because old pre-5G+ Telus plans do not have throttling, it’s plausible that it would have access to 3500mhz.
(Totally speculation)