For many months now, since the announcement that 2G waves would be turned off, Mr. Nguyen Trung Hieu (69 years old, Kim Boi district, Hoa Binh province) has spent his savings and asked his son to help him buy a smartphone for more than 4 million VND.
Mr. Hieu shared: "At first, when I first used it, I was confused because the touch screen phone has many functions and is very different from the "brick" phone I usually use."
However, after a period of being guided by his children and grandchildren, Mr. Hieu has now mastered the functions of a smartphone.
"A smartphone with 4G network can read newspapers, listen to music, watch movies and make video calls to children and grandchildren who live far away, much more convenient" - Mr. Hieu shared.
Similarly, Mr. Bui Van Hanh (65 years old, Mai Chau district, Hoa Binh province) also prepared a phone with a 4G SIM card before the announcement that 2G signal would be cut off.
"Currently, 4G and even 5G waves have reached even remote villages, so cutting off 2G waves is not too difficult for us. Almost everyone in the area where I live has used smartphones and has internet access. People are ready for change," said Mr. Hanh.
Talking to reporters, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Thanh - Director of MobiFone Hoa Binh branch said that up to now, in the province, there are 275 2G subscribers who need to change their phones.
According to Mr. Thanh, MobiFone Hoa Binh branch has many forms of support for customers to upgrade their phones such as buying Masstel Izi S1 4G phone at a preferential price or buying a package with a free phone, free domestic calls under 10 minutes, up to 1,000 minutes with 70 minutes of off-net calls.
Similarly, according to information from Viettel Hoa Binh branch, there are currently about 800 2G mobile subscribers in the province. The unit has and is currently having many programs to support the conversion for people.
In Lang Son province, according to the Department of Information and Communications, the whole province currently has only 1,493 2G mobile subscribers.
Through system review, network operators have determined that active 2G subscribers are mainly secondary subscribers, rarely used subscribers, and have very low revenue generated from fees.
"The shutdown of 2G after October 16 will not greatly affect people's communications" - the Department of Information and Communications of this province informed.
According to the Department, to support people in the province to convert 2G devices to 3G and 4G, Viettel Military Telecommunications Group and MobiFone Telecommunications Corporation have allocated 8,899 smartphones to Lang Son province and provided completely free support to people in difficult circumstances and remote areas in the province.
In particular, Viettel Lang Son alone supports over 8,000 free 4G smartphones for people in the province.
In addition, Viettel also has a preferential policy of up to 50% discount when purchasing some smartphone models using 4G technology.
VinaPhone customers who convert 2G devices to 3G or 4G will be able to use high-speed data packages at preferential prices.
Previously, the Ministry of Information and Communications set a target of completing the discontinuation of 2G technology by September 15, 2024 at the latest.
However, on September 13, the Ministry of Information and Communications decided to postpone the 2G shutdown to October 15.
The delay in shutting down 2G waves will give more time to devote resources to overcoming the consequences of storm No. 3 and the flood situation after the storm, and support the conversion of 4G phones for 2G only subscribers, especially subscribers in remote areas and provinces and cities affected by storms and floods, to ensure communication for users.