The Samsung SCH-W740 debuts in Korea, Sprint rolling out 4G in new markets, T-Mobile webConnect USB now available and more. Here is today’s mobile round up.
While most of us still have to experience the wonders of 3G, TeliaSonera is already working on 4G in Sweden. The commercial launch will take place in 2010 and the company promises data speeds of up to 100 Mbits/second.
“We are naturally very pleased to receive this 4G license,” says Håkan Dahlström, President of Mobility Services, TeliaSonera Sweden. “Above all, the license is important for our customers, who will have access to even faster mobile broadband.”
Now that the 700 Mhz spectrum is actually complete people can talk about their plans. Unsurprisingly both AT&T and Verizon plant to use their respective shares of the spectrum to deploy a high speed Long Term Evolution (LTE) network nationally. LTE is the next stage for GSM networks and can properly be considered a 4G technology, with throughputs estimated to hit 100 Mbps. Another interesting tidbit was that Google confirmed that they were bidding in the 700 Mhz auction to ensure that the open access provisions would be met. For those looking forward to LTE speeds you may not want to hold your breath as we're looking at a 2010 - 2012 launch.
Qualcomm Incorporated made significant strides in the mobile industry by announcing their plans to run trials on the 3G to 4G bridge technology, HSPA+, in 2008. Qualcomm will run trials on Hutchison 3G, Telecom Italia, Telefonica and Telstra and promise speeds of up to 28 Mbps.
"HSPA+ provides a highly efficient path for network operators to provide next-generation wireless services with their existing networks," said Steve Mollenkopf, senior vice president of product management for Qualcomm CDMA Technologies. "With trials this year, we are on track for commercialization in 2009, giving network operators the added benefit of time-to-market advantage in addition to advanced broadband capabilities."
Verizon has announced plans to develop 4G mobile broadband in 2008. The plans involve using LTE (Long Term Evolution) which has been tested in Japanwith early tests clocking in at speeds of 1GB to 5GB per second. Handset makers expected to be involved in the US 4G trial include Ericsson, Motorola, Nokia, and Nortel with the handsets expected to hit the market in early 2009.
Korean Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute have reportedly developed 4G technology, which makes it possible to achieve increased transmission rate of 3.6 gigabits per second (gbps). This means that one can download a 4.7GB DVD in a just around 10.5 seconds. Mind-boggling isn’t it ?
The technology should be commercialized by 2012 and Hwang Seung-koo, the head of ETRI's Mobile Telecommunications Research Division said that watching HD content in real time would be a possibility.
While the name seems a bit difficult to say, Xohm (aka Zome, like Rome) is their official branding for their new WiMAX service, expected to soft-launch toward the end of 2007 and fully launch next year. Just in case you've been living under a rock, WiMAX is the upcoming technology that fits under the "4G" category of cell phones. It's seen as a long-range method of hooking up data. While Sprint doesn't tout any specific download speeds in their press materials, likely because they're still finishing up the technology, WiMAX speeds are known to be about 10Mbps if you're 10 kilometers from the tower. WiMAX speeds vary depending on how close the user is to the tower, ranging from a maximum of 70 Mbps all the way down.
Now, if only T-Mobile could get into the 3G cellphone game. Scratch that, maybe they should concede the 3G game to Sprint, Verizon and AT&T, and try to leapfrog into 4G. Worth a shot...
4G cellular is the promise of the future – and is defined by the Wireless World Research Forum as the cell phone network that will be all IP based, and packet switched. The standard paving the way to a 4G reality is WiMax - which promises full mobility at broadband speeds and is the pet project of Intel these days.
In the old days, we used to laugh about 3G being the technology of the future – saying it always would be. 4G is not so much of joke, the world is going in two directions simultaneously – mobile, and packet-based. Its about time the two were joined. With heavy focus by giants like Intel, barring any new technical issues, we feel confident it will be upon us sooner than 3G ever was. Deployments have already begun in India, and in the Southern US.
The Samsung SCH-W740 debuts in Korea, Sprint rolling out 4G in new markets, T-Mobile webConnect USB now available and more. Here is today’s mobile round up.
While most of us still have to experience the wonders of 3G
Now that the 700 Mhz spectrum is actually complete people can talk about their plans. Unsurprisingly both AT&T and Verizon plant to use their respective shares of the spectrum to deploy a high speed Long Term Evolution (LTE) network nationally. LTE is the next stage for GSM networks and can properly be considered a 4G technology, with throughputs estimated to hit 100 Mbps. Another interesting tidbit was that Google confirmed that they were bidding in the 700 Mhz auction to ensure that the open access provisions would be met. For those looking forward to LTE speeds you may not want to hold your breath as we're looking at a 2010 - 2012 launch.
Qualcomm Incorporated 
Verizon 
While the name seems a bit difficult to say, Xohm (aka Zome, like Rome) is their official branding for their new WiMAX service, expected to soft-launch toward the end of 2007 and fully launch next year. Just in case you've been living under a rock,