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Vodacom LTE Coverage Expanded, New Devices on Sale

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Vodacom has tripled the number of its LTE base stations in Johannesburg from less than 70 at launch in October to over 200, with an LTE trial underway in Cape Town.LTE service is currently available to Vodacom contract customers and will be available to prepaid customers in 2013. The LTE devices automatically switch to 3G technology outside LTE coverage areas. The operator’s LTE device portfolio includes the Samsung Galaxy S3 LTE smartphone, the Vodafone K5006 and the Alcatel One Touch L100V LTE modem dongles.

Vodacom has tripled the number of LTE enabled base stations in its network from just under 70 at launch a month ago to over 200 in Johannesburg and testing has begun in Cape Town.

LTE, which stands for Long Term Evolution, is a new generation of mobile technology with the capability to operate at speeds up to 3 times faster than 3G.

Zunaid Dinath, Vodacom's Chief Officer Sales and Distribution said that "LTE represents a step change in mobile capabilities. Thanks to faster speeds, we're able to unlock the true potential of smartphones, tablets and other mobile devices. LTE has the ability to deliver stutter-free video and almost instantaneous music and picture downloads; and because it's mobile, we can deliver this experience whether you're at your office, on the move, or at home."

In addition to the wider network coverage, Vodacom now has LTE devices on sale at Vodacom World in Midrand and selected Vodacom outlets across Gauteng. Customers can now buy the Samsung Galaxy S III LTE, Vodafone K5006 and Alcatel One Touch L100V LTE dongle modems on the following contracts:


LTE devices

Contract

Samsung Galaxy S III LTE

R 449 per month on a Smart Standard 229 package and includes an additional 1 Gig of data per month for 3 months

Vodafone K5006 USB modem; or
Alcatel One Touch L100V USB modem

R129 per month on the Mofaya MyMeg 500
R149 per month on the Mofaya MyGig 1
R199 per month on the Mofaya MyGig 2
R249 per month on the Mofaya MyGig 3
R449 per month on the Mofaya MyGig 5
R749 per month on the Mofaya MyGig 10

Pricing includes the LTE service

Dinath adds "LTE devices are still in short supply worldwide but we're confident that we'll be able to give our customers a broad selection of LTE devices in the near future."

The LTE service is currently available to Vodacom Contract customers and will be available to Top-up and Prepaid customers in 2013.

The LTE devices will automatically switch to the 3G network when LTE coverage is not available.

For more information on the LTE coverage map and list of stores, customers can visit http://www.vodacom.co.za/personal/main/ournetwork/lte. Customer can also contact customer care on 111 free from a Vodacom phone or 082 111 from any other phone.