AT and T launches 5G network in the U.S., but don't get too excited yet

AT&T has launched its 5G network in the U.S., barely making its self-imposed, "by the end of the year" deadline. And in two days, on Dec. 21, the company will also start offering a mobile 5G device to customers. 

Caveats abound, however. The service is only live in 12 cities: Atlanta; Charlotte, N.C.; Dallas; Houston; Indianapolis; Jacksonville, Fla.; Louisville, Ky.; Oklahoma City; New Orleans; Raleigh, N.C.; San Antonio; and Waco, Texas.

And the device AT&T is launching with the network isn't a 5G phone. Instead, it's a Netgear Nighthawk 5G Mobile Hotspot, which will indeed offer faster speeds than an LTE hotspot, but only in "dense urban areas." If 5G+ (as AT&T calls its 5G network) is unavailable, the hotspot will work on the company's not-really-5G-but-also-quite-fast network, the 5G Evolution.  Read more...