By now, we’re pretty familiar with the term 4G LTE. But that in and of itself is somewhat surprising. It took 12 years for GSM wireless technology to reach one billion connections, and WCDMA took 11 years. But LTE will hit the same mark in just seven years of existence, according to a new report by Strategy Analytics.
If you’re not familiar with the term, a brief explanation would be that LTE (or Long Term Evolution) is a fourth-generation wireless standard that provides users with faster data speeds, all the while making more efficient use of a carrier’s wireless spectrum. → Read More
There’s been more than a little bit of Verizon news making the rounds today, and on the surface, it all seems like good stuff. Verizon will cover 200 more markets with LTE by the end of the year? Awesome! The next iPhone Verizon carries will probably have LTE? Not exactly a huge leap there, considering a LTE-packing iPad will hit Verizon shelves this Friday, but what the hell — I’m in.
But let’s take a step back for a second: how well will their network hold up under that kind of strain? Verizon wants to double the size of their LTE network by the end of the year, and in all likelihood will have a huge LTE flagship device in the form of the new iPhone. I don’t doubt for a second that Verizon will make good on their plans to expand their LTE network by leaps and bounds, but the carrier’s recent LTE hiccups don’t fill me with much confidence. → Read More
It seems like everyone and their mother are looking to roll out their own LTE networks these days: Verizon and AT&T continue to build theirs out, Sprint is busy laying the groundwork (possibly without LightSquared’s help), and MetroPCS and U.S. Cellular are offering LTE on a more local scale.
Now an even smaller operator is looking to join the fray — C Spire Wireless (formerly known as Cellular South) aims to light up LTE service in September 2012. The only catch is that you’ll have to be in Mississippi to use it. → Read More
While larger carriers like AT&T and Verizon are duking it out to cover the country in LTE signal, it’s sometimes easy to forget that there are other contenders in the ring too. Case in point: U.S. Cellular, the nation’s sixth largest wireless provider, announced earlier today that they plan to light up their forthcoming 4G LTE network in 14 additional states before the year is out.
U.S. Cellular revealed earlier this month that their LTE network would go live some time in March, and would initially cover “select cities in Wisconsin, Maine, Iowa, North Carolina, Oklahoma and Texas.” → Read More
Shortly before the AT&T/T-Mobile merger came to its ignominious end, Dish Network CEO Joseph Clayton casually expressed his interest in a partnership with T-Mobile as a means of bringing wireless voice service to Dish customers.
Those plans may not pan out if AT&T has anything to do with it. A new report from Bloomberg indicates that AT&T is apparently so hard up for additional spectrum that they’re considering shelling out “the highest premium in more than a decade” to acquire the satellite TV provider and their spectrum holdings. → Read More
We’re no strangers to Novatel Wireless — their aircards have been saving us on a regular basis this week — and now they’ve swung by our part of the ShowStoppers stage to show off their new Jetpack mobile hotspot for Verizon. → Read More
Sprint’s LTE network is only slated to go live in a handful of markets right now, but the country’s third largest wireless carrier is wasting no time in introducing some hew hardware to take advantage of the nascent network. → Read More
Well that was… timely. It was just a little while ago that Sprint CEO Dan Hesse dropped some details about his company’s forthcoming network, and now a Sprint Galaxy Nexus ad has just appeared on CNET’s website.
If this ad proves to be legitimate (and I’ve got all my fingers crossed), Sprint customers may truly be rewarded for their patience. Hovering over the bottom right touchpoint reveals a very tantalizing tidbit: Sprint’s variant will apparently have a 1.5GHz processor instead of the 1.2GHz proc as seen in the international and Verizon models. Wow. → Read More
Not wanting to be outdone by their larger rivals, Sprint also has a big LTE-related announcement today. Sprint CEO Dan Hesse just confirmed to everyone at Citigroup’s 22nd Global Entertainment, Media and Telecommunications Conference that Atlanta, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio will be the company’s first LTE markets.
Those cities are just the tip of the iceberg though, as Sprint ultimately wants their LTE network lit up in ten markets before the first half of 2012 rolls around. Here’s hoping that the coasts get a little LTE love too, as the three of the announced markets are in a single (admittedly large) state, and the other isn’t that far away from them. → Read More
AT&T definitely has a few LTE-friendly goodies planned for an official reveal at CES, but those shiny new toys won’t be doing you much good unless you’ve got that 4G network to go with it.
To that end, AT&T has just announced they have fired up LTE service in 11 new areas today, bringing their running total to 26 markets and 74 million covered customers. → Read More
AT&T is slowly and steadily building up their portfolio of LTE-capable devices, and it looks like yet another has just broken cover. Due to be officially unveiled on January 8, the Pantech Element is AT&T’s newest LTE tablet, and is the first in AT&T’s lineup not to cost an absurd amount of money with a contract. → Read More
It seems like December just can’t end soon enough for the folks at Verizon — we’re getting reports that Verizon’s data network is once again on the fritz.
Like both other times this month, not everyone is affected, but I can safely say my little part of New Jersey is without data. Users on Verizon’s support forums have reported similar issues in parts of Georgia, Michigan, Oregon, Pennsylvania, California, Virginia, Washington, Texas, and Maryland.
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Japan’s biggest mobile carrier NTT Docomo has introduced LG’s awesome Optimus Android phone in Japan yesterday. It’s compatible to Docomo’s 4G service Xi and follows the launch of the handset in Korea and North America.
The Docomo version comes equipped with NFC and a digital TV tuner for Japanese users wanting to watch 1seg channels on the 4.5-inch, 1280×720 IPS display. LG did not build in an infrared connection, however (which many Japanese mobile subscribers got used to on their feature phones). → Read More
Well it’s about time — after months of breathless waiting, it appears that Verizon’s LTE-capable Galaxy Nexus will launch tomorrow. The word comes courtesy of 9to5Google, who appears to have unearthed a release from Big Red themselves celebrating the device’s long-awaited release. → Read More
Verizon is awash in solid tablet options right now, but their current LTE-capable lineup may leave you wanting for something a little less unwieldy. If the thought of manhandling a 10-inch tablet is too much to bear, then take note: Samsung’s Galaxy Tab 7.7 will be coming to Big Red in due course with support for the company’s 4G network in tow.
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Folks in the Great White North have reason to be excited today, especially if they’re a customer of the Rogers network. Canada’s largest wireless carrier has today announced the expansion of its new LTE network in the Greater Toronto area and surrounding Vancouver. → Read More
Just in time to throw a wrench into people’s wireless shopping plans, Verizon has announced that their much-vaunted 4G LTE network is experiencing a few hiccups. And by hiccups, I mean that their 4G network is currently undergoing a widespread outage that’s affecting customers across the country.
According to a recent release, “Verizon Wireless engineers have been working to resolve an issue with 4G LTE service that is affecting some customers’ 4G devices,” and that “3G data and voice devices are unaffected.” However, that doesn’t exactly seem to be the case for everyone affected: reports are floating around on blogs and Verizon’s customer forums that some people are without so much as a 3G or 1X connection. Stranger still, some customers are completely fine with everything working as it should.
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Verizon’s new 4G data plan promotion sounds awfully generous, but CFO Fran Shammo said at an investors’ conference yesterday that it’s more than just a way to push 4G hardware during the holidays. The deal is also meant to reduce congestion on the company’s 3G EV-DO network, so iPhone users will be able to enjoy a more consistent network experience.
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The Lumia 800 may not have a gargantuan screen or a front-facing camera, but according to The Verge, the U.S.-bound version of Nokia’s flagship Windows Phone may play nice with some of our LTE networks.
It’s a welcome surprise for domestic Nokia fans — when the Lumia series was first announced last month, Nokia slyly omitted any release details for the United States. Nokia U.S. boss Chris Weber also mentioned not long after the big event that the company is preparing to bring a “full portfolio” of Windows Phones to the States starting in early 2012, but wouldn’t shed any light on the Lumia situation. → Read More
The HTC Rezound (formerly the Vigor) has been on our radar for what seems like forever now, but we’re here in New York City for HTC’s big event, and they have just officially pulled back the curtains on their next Gingerbread-powered smartphone. Fear not though, Ice Cream Sandwich fans: the Rezound will ship ready for Ice Cream Sandwich, and HTC and Verizon are aiming to push it to the Rezound early next year. → Read More
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