4G is expanding in the UK

EE, The company that scored itself a major head start in the 4G race, is expanding it's coverage to 12 smaller towns – but it isn't the only one. O2 and Vodafone are also bumping up their network coverage to five more cities starting today.

The latest towns added to the EE 4G roster are; Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Beaconsfield, Blackburn, Burton upon Trent, Coalville and Chester-le-Street. EE currently has the most coverage but that isn't surprising considering it launched a year ahead of other carriers. Most major cities are covered, so spreading out to the surrounding towns seems like a good way to progress.

On the other hand, we have O2 and Vodafone, delivering 4G to Birmingham, Coventry, Leicester, Nottingham and Sheffield. 4G still comes at a substantial price premium at the moment, making SIM-only deals and contracts quite pricey, but with 2014  set to see 98 per cent of the country covered by EE, hopefully prices will start to come down a bit.

The cheapest SIM-only deal at the moment starts at £26 per month, giving you 1GB of 4G data combined with unlimited calls and texts on O2, which isn't a bad way to go as 1GB is just enough for everyday social networking with a few YouTube videos thrown in here and there.

Three will be joining the 4G arena this December, with its main selling point being that it won't charge any extra money for 4G over 3G. Hopefully this will make other carriers bring prices down. 4G is actually cheaper to broadcast than 3G, making Three's approach the most consumer friendly one.

KitGuru Says: 4G still isn't available in my area yet so I haven't had the chance to try it out. However, I am not really looking forward to getting it at its current price point. If prices come down next year then maybe I'll be swayed. Do any of you guys currently use 4G? Do you think it's worth the extra money?

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