In a groundbreaking achievement, T-Mobile has successfully completed the world’s inaugural six-carrier aggregation call using sub-6 GHz spectrum on its operational 5G network. Teaming up with Ericsson and Qualcomm, T-Mobile harnessed the power of six 5G component carriers, reaching speeds exceeding 3.6 Gbps, equivalent to downloading a two-hour HD film in less than seven seconds.

Neville Ray, former President of Technology at T-Mobile, expressed his excitement stating:

We are thrilled to have achieved this milestone, which showcases the incredible speeds and performance our customers can expect from our industry-leading 5G network.

The test involved the combination of two channels of 2.5 GHz Ultra Capacity 5G, two channels of PCS spectrum, and two channels of AWS spectrum, resulting in an effective 245 MHz of aggregated bandwidth. Carrier aggregation, a technology allowing the combination of multiple channels across different frequency bands, substantially enhances throughput and capacity.

Ulf Ewaldsson, President of Technology at T-Mobile, emphasized the company’s commitment to pushing the limits of 5G to ensure customers experience transformative speeds and network performance.

In a recent announcement, T-Mobile unveiled a new service leveraging “Direct to Cell” capabilities integrated into SpaceX’s Starlink satellites. This service facilitates direct communication between a user’s phone and the satellite network, eliminating the need for traditional ground cell towers. Neville Ray reiterated T-Mobile’s dedication to achieving 100 percent connectivity coverage for Americans, calling the alliance with SpaceX a “groundbreaking” move that changes the connectivity landscape and aims for universal mobile access.

Initially focusing on providing essential text messaging capabilities, the service plans to expand to voice and data services in the coming years. T-Mobile envisions a future where its customers are able to stay connected wherever they can see the sky.