Apr 12, 2021 4:49pm Vodafone launched 5G in Germany in 2019 and just activate standalone 5G in the live network. (Vodafone) Vodafone Germany CEO said the operator is the first in Europe to take off the so-called LTE training wheels of its 5G network, launching standalone (SA) 5G on Monday with vendor partner Ericsson. All mobile radio sites in the 3.5 GHz range were switched over and now connect to an independent 5G core network, no longer relying on LTE. That includes 1,000 antennas in 170 cities and municipalities, according to Vodafone. Large cities like Berlin, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Munich and Düsseldorf, are on the list, as well as smaller locations Magdeburg, Solingen, Bremen and Mainz. By the end of 2021, the mobile operator plans to up the number of radios connected to 5G standalone in Germany to around 4,000 – which calls for additional spectrum bands.