EE and Vodafone turn off their 3G networks

EE and Vodafone have announced the closure of their 3G networks this week, with both achieving their target dates.

EE revealed they have successfully shut down all of their remaining 18,000 3G sites. However, although Vodafone have shut down the majority of 3G sites, a handful of locations will remain live. These include areas with UK security significance, as well as some remote rural locations - Vodafone did not disclose which sites will continue to use 3G.

Both networks claim to have repurposed their 3G infrastructure into 4G and 5G sites, which should significantly reduce power consumption - 3G is extremely power hungry, using around 10 times more energy compared to 4G and 5G infrastructure. In fact, O2 recently revealed its 3G network accounted for 11% of their power consumption, despite only using 4% of data.

Three is expected to announce the closure of their 3G network by the end of the year. O2 will shut off its 3G network a little later in 2025, as a significant number of O2’s IoT devices, such as smart metres, are 3G only compatible. What will happen to such 3G devices after O2’s shut off date in 2025 has not been announced, however it’s likely they will be replaced with 4G and 5G compatible devices, which will cost a pretty penny.

The news follows a recent survey that showed 2.7 million Britons still use a 3G only handset. It’s likely EE and Vodafone will receive many complaints following the closure of their 3G networks, despite an extensive campaign to make the public aware of the shut off - only 43% of the general public were aware the 3G switch off was taking place in the first place. Not a very successful campaign, it seems.

2G is expected to shut off in 2033, in line with the UK's Government target date. 2G is still a useful fallback in emergencies, and doesn’t require much power or maintenance to run, which is why it will be the last of the legacy networks to close.