Rain launches 5G in South Africa – pricing and coverage

Rain has launched its commercial 5G network in South Africa.

In a statement on Wednesday (18 September), Rain’s chief marketing officer Khaya Dlanga said that the service will first launch in parts of Johannesburg and Tshwane, with access being made available to select customers.

He said that coverage will be expanded to the major metros in South Africa over the course of 2020.

“Selected customers in Rain’s 5G coverage area have been invited to be the first to purchase ultra-fast 5G, unlimited internet from R1,000 per month,” he said.

“Rain will deliver a state-of-the-art 5G router to a customer’s home. No installation is required, the router is simply plug-and-play and you will connected immediately.

“The speed and capacity of the 5G network, together with the latest Wifi 6 technology in the router, will enable rain users to stream high-definition video to multiple devices simultaneously.”

Dlanga said that the initial offering aims to provide fast, affordable and easy to install wireless connectivity to homes and businesses as an alternative to ADSL fibre and fixed-LTE.

He noted that during testing, Rain has seen speeds approaching 700 Mbps in ideal conditions. However, in real-world conditions the company expects to see at least 200 Mbps for customers, he said.

You can find out more about the service here.

Read: South Africa’s best mobile network: Vodacom vs MTN vs Cell C vs Telkom vs Rain