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by Tomas Jivanda, 24 July, 2013

EE has launched 4G in ten more towns across the UK, meaning the superfast mobile network now covers 60 per cent of the country.

Altrincham, Bedford, Camberley, Crawley, Farnborough, Farnham, Maidstone, Rochdale, Tonbridge and Welwyn Garden City are all now covered by EE's 4G network, bringing the total to 95 towns and cities across the UK.

Additionally, the company has doubled 4G speeds in three cities - Belfast, Newcastle and Southampton. EE's double speed 4G, which offers speeds up to 60Mbps and averages of 24-30Mbps, is now available in fifteen cities.

EE launched its 4G network nine months ago and now plans to bring coverage to 98 per cent of the population by 2014. The company also announced that it now has 687,000 4G customers. 

Olaf Swantee, EE's CEO, said: "It has been a busy summer with the launch of next generation services including Cash on Tap and new Shared 4GEE plans, and we're continuing to keep up the pace of our 4G rollout.

"Today we're launching in a further 10 UK towns bringing superfast 4G services to more and more businesses and consumers. The arrival of double speed 4G in a further three cities means we remain one step ahead, and on track to provide our customers with a world leading mobile experience."

EE is currently the only 4G provider in the UK after it successfully applied to Ofcom to transfer bandwidth used for 3G to 4G, before the 4G spectrum auction, leaving its competitors behind.

Vodafone, O2 and Three are expected to launch rival 4G services in the coming months.

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EE announces 4 July launch for double-speed 4G network across UK

by Aatif Sulleyman, 03 July, 2013

EE has announced that its double-speed 4G network is going live in 12 major UK cities on 4 July.

Speaking at an event in London, the telecommunications firm also announced the launch of Cash on Tap, Bright Box 2 and its brand new shared 4GEE plans.

In theory, users will gain access to top speeds of 150Mbps, but EE has revealed that average speeds of between 24-30Mbps are more likely.

Still, current 4G customers, who will be upgraded at no extra cost, should see download times halve.

The upgrade puts the UK's 4G network ahead of all others around the world, except for South Korea's. "Our new double speed 4G technology means that we have the biggest, fastest and best network in the UK, and now the equal fastest in the world," said Olaf Swantee, CEO of EE.

The company last month said that it was doubling 4G speeds in 10 cities, namely Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, London, Manchester and Sheffield, but Derby and Nottingham have just emerged as surprise additions.

The move comes just months before rivals, such as Vodafone and O2, launch their own LTE networks.

"We're staying one step ahead with the launch of double speed 4G and a range of new innovative plans and services – designed to transform the way our customers connect and share content," added Swantee.

In terms of EE's other new services, the shared 4G plan will come into life on 17 July. Aimed at families and couples, up to five devices will be able to connect to a single package, gaining unlimited calls and texts while sharing a data allowance.

EE has also teamed up with MasterCard to launch Cash on Tap, its new NFC payment service, which is supported by over 230,000 UK outlets.

Finally, there's also the Bright Box 2 wireless router, which EE says will offer stronger Wi-Fi signals to EE's fibre broadband customers. 

EE last month announced that its 4G service has surpassed the 500,000 subscribers mark.  

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