Vodafone Germany said it will stop operating the 3G network on 30 June 2021. The company will gradually reduce the 3G frequency spectrum, while improving capacity for LTE. This will not have an impact on customers still using 3G, the company said.
Customers who use 3G can start to surf on LTE after the shutdown in June, free of charge. Less than 3 percent of Vodafone customers currently use 3G.
Those who are still using UMTS should be informed in the course of the next 14 months in detail about the impending shutdown of the aging cellular technology. If you still use an old 3G SIM card, you can exchange it for free at Vodafone for an LTE SIM. In addition, a new online shop will soon be launched, in which LTE hardware can be purchased for well under 100 euros. In addition to established smartphone manufacturers, Vodafone promises that new providers such as Oppo will also offer their end devices.
And what about prepaid discounters who use the Vodafone network for their own tariffs? VoLTE should also be available to them by the end of June 2021 at the latest. They are in talks with partners such as 1 & 1, freenet or their own discount brand otelo and assume that they will be able to reach agreements with all of them over the next 14 months. The exact start time of VoLTE is the responsibility of the respective partner, according to Vodafone.vodafone germany 3g.
The network operator emphasizes that voice and SMS services will continue to function after the UMTS switch-off. The same applies to the eCall car emergency call. In case of doubt, availability is also guaranteed via the still usable 2G network (GSM). However, the goal is to run all services at least in the expanded LTE network. And not just with a view to data, but also to voice services. For example, Vodafone is aiming to be able to offer Voice over LTE (VoLTE) to its prepaid customers (CallYa) from summer. Voice traffic then also works via the Vodafone LTE network.
Source: https://alertify.eu/vodafone-germany-to-stop-3g-on-30-june-2021/