Global leap to 4G and 5G would cut off phone access for millions of vulnerable people.

  • Telecom companies aim to profit from the 2G-to-5G transition as governments worldwide face pressure to free up mobile spectrum.
  • Vietnam is the latest country to shut down 2G by offering free 4G phones to the poor.
  • India and South Africa have expressed concern that the strategy would cut off phone access for millions of vulnerable people.
  • octobob@lemmy.ml
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    2 days ago

    Gonna be honest, it’s been a while since I’ve been out to the country. I just saw most carriers shut down 3G in 2022. Time flies and all that.

    Also now that I think about it, we may have been installing 4G LTE modems on our pumps lately. That customer only buys a few systems a year.

    I wonder too, say 3G gets totally shut down in the US. Will new phones still be able to connect to it if I’m traveling outside the US? I was bopping around some small islands in the Pacific last year and was heavily relying on 3G for things like maps.