Vodafone Qatar has announced that it has ramped up for 5G with the first tests being successfully conducted using spectrum in the 3.5GHz band allocated for 5G.
Vodafone Qatar’s engineers are already laying the groundwork for a 5G network at more than 50 sites in key locations across strategic cities in the country, the company has said in a press statement.
Once 5G is launched commercially, it will "revolutionise how people in Qatar live and work". Vodafone Qatar’s 5G network will introduce ‘Vodafone Gigabit Qatar’, which is "the dawn of the next digital revolution where people and businesses, for the first time, will enjoy ultra-fast Gigabit speeds, featuring low latency and more reliable network performance to give the user a real-time, uninterrupted experience", the statement notes.
The news builds on Vodafone Qatar’s "extensive investment and commitment to date in supporting world-class infrastructure in Qatar and bringing new technologies to life", the company has stressed. In doing so, the business will leverage its track record of delivery around the world, building on the widespread experience of introducing the latest technologies and successfully testing and trialling 5G in a number of countries.
Sheikh Hamad Abdulla Jassim al-Thani, Vodafone Qatar’s CEO, said: “Qatar is a dynamic, young country with big ambitions. In support of Qatar National Vision 2030, our development of 5G services will accelerate the country towards becoming one of the most connected and technologically advanced in the world, opening up future use cases of 5G technologies.
“In 'Gigabit Qatar', advanced applications like connected homes, driverless cars, virtual reality and augmented reality will become a part of our everyday world, enhancing the quality of our lives and helping drive economic growth and productivity in Qatar.”
Vodafone Qatar yesterday said the announcement also follows the news earlier last week that Vodafone Qatar’s mobile network is the best in Qatar for data and voice, according to the Communications Regulatory Authority's Quality of Service levels audit. 
This highlighted how Vodafone Qatar customers are now experiencing crystal-clear voice quality and enhanced data speeds, allowing for seamless online content streaming and superfast downloads. Vodafone Qatar ranked first on local data with best speeds achieved for average download and uploads. On voice, Vodafone Qatar had the fastest call set-up time and best voice quality, as well as achieving 100% on call completion, the statement added.

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