China's three major telecom operators have been approved to set up 5G networks in big cities, reports Beijing Youth Daily.

[Photo: IC]

China Unicom will pilot 5G-technology in 16 cities including Beijing, Tianjin, Qingdao, Guiyang and Zhengzhou. China Mobile will launch offline testing in five cities in eastern and southern China, with each city installed with more than 100 5G stations as well as 5G application demonstrations in 12 cities. China Telecom has confirmed it will pilot 5G-technology in Xiong'an, Shanghai, Suzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu and Lanzhou, and plans to expand the network to six more cities.

China Unicom said it has started free chip upgrading for 2G users and cut 2G frequencies for the 5G network.

Analysts say 2G is obsolete and 3G is also being phased out. 5G technology will accelerate smartphone speed tenfold and bring intelligent driving, AR and VR into our daily lives.