Verizon’s preorders for the Galaxy S10 5G are open now. Samsung’s first 5G phone will start at $1,300 and go on sale May 16. We already knew that Samsung’s fastest phone would sell with Verizon first, before coming to other carriers. It’s also available from Samsung’s website, but only with Verizon for now.
The 256GB version costs $1,300, and a 512GB model goes for $1,400 — both come in “crown silver” or “majestic black,” a Verizon-exclusive hue. If you preorder the S10 5G, you’ll also get a “VIP kit” that bundles a pair of the wireless Galaxy Buds with a wireless charging battery pack and a water bottle.
Along with the launch, Verizon also announced 20 new 5G cities for 2019.
The Galaxy S10 5G is the fourth, largest and most advanced variant of the Galaxy S10 series. With a 6.7-inch screen, a total of 6 cameras and the ability to shoot portrait mode video, Samsung is holding the S10 5G aloft as the deluxe model of its flagship line for spring.
The Galaxy S10 5G costs $300 more than the Galaxy S10 Plus, which starts at $1,000. Together, these phones, and the foldable Galaxy Fold for $1,980, are helping push the cost of premium phones even higher.
As Samsung’s first 5G phone, the S10 5G represents the tip of the spear, Samsung’s and otherwise. Last week, Verizon flipped the switch on its first 5G network, which CNET got a chance to test in downtown Chicago.
The tests revealed a rocky start, but Verizon’s rushed efforts to claim first in the world are just the beginning. AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile are close behind, with phonemakers readying their first 5G wares. On Verizon’s network, the Moto Z3 with an attachable 5G Moto Mod became the first 5G-capable phone to go on sale.
5G, along with foldable phones, represents one of 2019’s biggest phone trends. The next-generation technology is set to increase the download speeds on your phone by anywhere from 10 to 100 percent, depending on where you live and which network you’re on. The networks won’t be capable of those speeds yet.
5G will grow inch by inch, as our patchy tests on Verizon’s hatchling network revealed. But early benchmarking speed test results were promising in areas where 5G was active.
Beyond download speeds, 5G has the ability to connect you to massive bandwidth, which means that in the future, 5G-ready phones will be able to do things like host crystal clear video calls with no lag and AR and VR environments that won’t make you feel sick because of a lag known as latency.
You’ll also be able to interact with streaming media in different ways, as in the live 5G demo Samsung showed off in March on the Galaxy S10 5G, where it was possible to pinch and zoom on a baseball player on the field to see his pitch from multiple angles during streaming.
“[5G] will change the way people work, this will change the way businesses can be efficient. This will change education,” said Mike Haberman, Verizon’s VP of network engineering.
Here are the 5G phones coming your way this year, including the Galaxy S10 5G.
Read: Thanks to Samsung and Verizon, 5G is about to get all up in your face
Published April 11 at 7:10 am. PT.
Update, 7:30 a.m. PT: Added more detail.
Update, April 25 at 10:17 a.m. PT: Added preorder detail