Anyone who is a customer of the mobile phone provider O2 and uses a smartwatch like the Apple Watch will be offered a new option in the already familiar 5G Plus Pack from now until December 15, 2026: RedCap will be available for booking. The upgrade can be booked conveniently and free of charge in addition to an existing mobile phone contract, which should benefit from lower energy consumption and the latest 5G network technology.
“The new 5G Plus Pack including RedCap is based on the latest 5G network technology and is designed for future-oriented devices and services. It uses the modern 5G standalone (5G SA) network and works independently of the 4G/LTE network. Reduced Capability is a new, more efficient variant of the 5G standard. This means that battery consumption is significantly reduced in devices that do not have a large battery or have many antennas, in contrast to regular 5G. For example with smart watches or smart cameras, compatible devices remain operational and reliably connected for longer.”
This is how O2 describes the “Reduced Capacity”, also abbreviated as RedCap technology, in the provider’s 5G network. The above-mentioned 5G Plus Pack from O2 including RedCap does not activate automatically, but must be booked manually by O2 customers in the My O2 area, via the app, by telephone or in person in an O2 shop. In order to use RedCap, in addition to a 5G-capable mobile phone tariff, a 5G Plus-capable SIM or eSIM as well as a compatible device are required.
5G Plus capable SIM card or eSIM required
If you don’t yet have a 5G Plus-capable SIM card or eSIM, you can contact O2 to initiate a free exchange. The 5G Plus Pack including RedCap has a minimum term of one month, after which it can be canceled monthly. Anyone who changes tariff automatically loses the pack as it then expires. According to a statement from O2, the 5G Plus network is now available to more than 90 percent of the German population.
The competitor T-Mobile has also already published a RedCap offer, but Vodafone does not yet have such an option. The technology is not only suitable for smartwatches like the Apple Watch, but can also be used with fitness bands, sleep trackers, connected IoT and home devices, cameras, smart speakers, body composition scales, door sensors and more. All information about RedCap at O2 can be found on the provider’s corresponding help page.
