UK 4G Carrier EE Says It's Doubling Speeds Today

Back in April, UK 4G carrier EE has revealed plans to increase its network speeds in multiple cities. The company said it planned to bump speeds for Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, London, Manchester, and Sheffield, but didn't specify a date beyond 'summer.'

The company this week confirmed that the update is happening today, July 4. The arrival of double-speed 4G (which EE claims enables lab speeds of 130 Mbps), will boost average speeds for 4GEE customers to more than 20 Mbps (this is double the current average).

"We are ensuring that the UK remains at the forefront of the digital revolution. Having already pioneered 4G here, we’re now advancing the country’s infrastructure again with an even faster, even higher-capacity network, and at no extra cost to our customers," Olaf Swantee, Chief Executive Officer, EE said in April. "Our double speed 4G network will provide developers with the quality and speeds needed to develop the next wave of killer 4G apps. Whatever innovations they come up with, we’re ready."

EE launched its 4G LTE network last October with special permission from telecoms watchdog Ofcom. The company was able to launch before anyone else because it repurposed some of its existing 3G spectrum rather than waiting for Ofcom's spectrum auction in early 2013. Though the aforementioned auction is done and dusted, EE remains the only 4G LTE carrier in the UK. Competitors like O2 and Vodafone plan to have 4G service up and running before the year is out.