In line with developments in mobile telephone technology, Swisscom will switch off their 2G network at the end of 2020. The other Swiss national operators, as well as operators in France and elsewhere, will also switch off their 2G networks in the near future.

This means that 2G, GPRS and EDGE services will not be available for CERN subscribers in Switzerland or in CERN’s underground facilities anymore. SMS (Short Message Service) services will be maintained via 3G/4G.

People still using 2G – with, for example, a 2G-only mobile phone, a 2G only modem for M2M (machine-to-machine) applications or a 2G-only SMS module – will need to replace their devices before the end of the year. You can check if your device is 2G-only by sending an SMS quoting 2G to 444.

If you do need to purchase a new mobile/module, you should check it is 3G and 4G compatible as the 3G network is also likely to be phased-out in some countries in the near future. All mobile phones available via the CERN shop are 4G ready.

This article was originally published on 10 February 2020.

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