No cell phone reception again? Such an annoyance was experienced quite frequently in North Rhine-Westphalia not so long ago. But in the meantime, the expansion of mobile communications is making good progress. But that doesn't mean that the network connection is top notch everywhere.
Düsseldorf (dpa / lnw) - Cell phone reception in North Rhine-Westphalia has improved. The 5G mobile communications standard could be received in more than 80 percent of the state in July, around nine percentage points more than in January, the State Ministry of Economics announced in Düsseldorf on Friday, citing figures from the three network operators Deutsche Telekom, Vodafone and Telefónica (O2 ).
The 80 percent value means that at least one of the three 5G networks is working in this area of the country. However, since consumers usually only have one mobile phone contract and thus access to only one network, the area of the country where they do not get 5G reception is larger. Still, the numbers are good news for consumers. Because they make it clear that the 5G expansion is progressing.
According to the information, 4G (LTE) coverage is 97.9 percent of the country's area, 0.2 percentage points higher than at the beginning of January. So if you don't have 5G reception, you often have access to the network in the previous 4G standard. Its bandwidth is sufficient for most apps and other mobile applications.
Economics Minister Mona Neubaur (Greens) confirmed the goal of nationwide 5G coverage for all citizens, companies and research institutions by the end of this decade.
"We will continue to improve the framework conditions for self-sufficient expansion," said Neubaur. "At the same time, we expect mobile network operators to make targeted and binding expansion efforts for LTE and 5G coverage." Above all, the areas in which there is no 4G/LTE network at all - so-called white spots - "must finally be eliminated so that all users have reliable network quality for voice and data transmission," said Neubaur. She was referring to the two percent of the area in North Rhine-Westphalia where 4G/LTE cannot yet be received.
