C Spire said consumers and businesses are experiencing 5G-equivalent mobile broadband speeds up to 200 Mbps.

C Spire has deployed additional Band 41 carriers with carrier aggregation, increased cell site antenna capacity using features like 12-layer MIMO, achieved improvements in spectral efficiency (256 QAM) and overall network optimization for balanced data delivery.

Carla Lewis is the chief technology officer (CTO) for C Spire, responsible for network expansion and investment related strategies.

“We’re delivering real 5G speeds, better service and an improved customer experience today through widespread use – almost 10,000 route miles – of some of the world’s most advanced technology – fiber optic infrastructure,” said Brian Caraway, general manager of C Spire’s wireless division.

Brian Caraway said C Spire deployed additional high-frequency Band 41 spectrum, which supports the higher mobile broadband speeds, at 172 cell sites strategically located in 40 cities and 31 counties in the Magnolia state.

Cell sites that received the Band 41 spectrum upgrade and offer 5G speeds

The Delta (ten counties and 29 sites)

East Central Mississippi (two sites in Meridian)

Central Mississippi (four counties and 56 sites)

Gulf Coast (two counties and 19 sites)

The Pine Belt (four counties and 18 sites)

Southwest Mississippi (two counties and 8 sites)

North Mississippi/Golden Triangle (six counties and 30 sites)

The initial phase, completed in 2019, will bring Voice over LTE or high-definition mobile voice service with simultaneous voice and data and pave the way for other improvements, including carrier aggregation. C Spire said it is continuing to boost speeds at more cell sites in 2020.

Brian Caraway said the Band 41 roll out comes on the heels of a 10-month project last year to deploy more spectrum and add capacity to nearly one of every five cell sites in the C Spire network, targeting 252 cell sites in 41 counties for the enhancements and improving capacity and speed for thousands of customers.

The company installed new base stations and software at its 1,200-plus cell sites last year, resulting in a 20 percent average speed boost across the network.