Orange will proceed step by step to disable 3G. Wetteren is the first to act, by the end of 2025 3G must be a thing of the past.

Orange announced the end of 3G during Mobile World Congress 2022 and now the telecom operator is also revealing its plans. The first 3G networks will be removed from January 2024, but Orange is proceeding step by step. The East Flemish city of Wetteren goes first, followed by names, the coastal cities of Antwerp and Leuven.

In the course of 2025, the 3G network will eventually be phased out completely. Here you can take a closer look at the schedule so you know when it’s your city or region’s turn.

Limited Effect

According to Orange, the 3G shutdown will only have a limited impact as the vast majority of mobile customers have been communicating over 4G for years. 3G coverage is also much more limited compared to 4G.

Business IoT applications based on 3G can continue to use 2G temporarily. If possible, migrating to 4G or 5G is the better solution in both the short and long term.

Why is 3G disappearing?

3G uses radio frequency radiation, for which each telecom operator had to buy part of the radio spectrum in the auctions. Orange would like to free up additional space in the spectrum in order to be able to expand its 5G networks nationwide. For the same reasons, Proximus and Telenet will also start phasing out 3G from next year.

The same fate ultimately awaits the previous generation 2G. However, since the 2G network is less of an obstacle to 4G and 5G, it can still be supported for a few years, at least until the end of 2028. Orange will communicate about this.