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Which of the major mobile provides has the fastest transfer speeds? We’ve seen a number of attempts to nail this down, and it seems that each time we get a different answer. A Gizmodo survey said Sprint. Another said AT&T. So which is it? PC World got into the game, and has found that AT&T is the fastest. This isn’t by any insignificant margin, either. Their average download speed is 60 percent faster than the next closest competitor, Verizon, and the average upload speed is 78 percent faster
We’ve seen a number of 3G routers released over the past year or so, mostly tied to specific carriers. This latest one, from NETGEAR and Ericsson, could be among the best. It combines an internal 3G radio with a traditional wireless router to provide customers with a primary or backup option for their Internet needs. After the jump, we’ll touch on some of the specifics.
For the past few years we’ve heard cell phone carriers tout the virtues of LTE to us. Most of them have hopped on the bandwagon, and Verizon claims they’ll have North America’s first LTE network running early this year. We haven’t heard many specifics from their testing, but we did hear something about TeliaSonera’s LTE network. The news, unfortunately, was not all good. While they did get a nice, speedy 5Mbps upstream, they couldn’t get the downstream to exceed 12Mbps. With T-Mobile and AT&T looking to release 21Mbps HSPA+ networks, that speed just won’t cut it. Again, that’s not necessarily indicative of Verizon’s network, but it certainly raises concerns about when we’ll actually see them deploy LTE in the States.
The prospect of a fourth-generation network and the opportunities it can bring to modern technology has excited many. Verizon Wireless plans to launch the nation’s first commercial LTE 4G network this year, which could kickstart a wave of products developed with Internet capabilities. In fact, that’s what Verizon plans to do. They want third-party developers to create products that can connect to their network. But consumers shouldn’t get too hopeful yet. The connectivity might not justify the cost.
One of the most difficult aspects of launching a 4G network is the transition. How does a carrier get its customers, already equipped with 3G devices, to sign up for 4G plans? Sprint thinks it has the answer. They’ve been releasing hybrid devices that can capture both 3G and 4G signal. This not only opens up 4G for more customers, but it allows customers in 3G markets to prepare for a 4G upgrade. Their latest, the Overdrive, is more than that. It’s a mobile hotspot, much like the MiFi that Verizon launched earlier this year. The device can send a 3G or 4G signal to up to five devices. It requires a contract, though — a two-year commitment to a service plan of $59, plus $99 for the device after a $50 mail-in rebate. It will be available January 10.
When shopping for a 3G mobile broadband package, consumers should expect two things: high prices, low caps. It’s not an ideal scenario, but it’s the situation we’re stuck with. That’s why we view the new DataJack mobile broadband plans with a twinge of skepticism. The company will launch the service at CES with an initial price of $39.99 per month, or about $20 less than the big carriers. While that by itself might be conceivable, the further details are not. There is no usage cap, and it doesn’t require a contract. So how is DataJack going to get away with this?
Every price decrease has to start somewhere. For mobile broadband, it might have started with T-Mobile. The last major U.S. carrier to offer mobile broadband services, T-Mobile stuck with the industry-wide cap of 5GB, but undercut its competitors by $10 per month, offering theirs at $50. They’re officially the cheapest of the Big Four now, and when one company lowers its price, the rest usually follow. So why haven’t we seen AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint knocking down their $60 monthly plans? Because T-Mobile, in terms of 3G, isn’t yet on the same level.
One of the biggest stories in the cellular world over the past few weeks is the spat between Verizon Wireless and AT&T. It started when Verizon ran ads mocking AT&T’s 3G coverage, noting that they cover much, much more of the country with 3G than AT&T. The two sides argued, with AT&T eventually filing suit against Verizon. In question is the definition of 3G coverage. Technically, by the accepted definition of 3G, Verizon did not lie in their ads. The truth, however, is not as clear cut.
As it currently stands, 3G wireless services are used mainly on two devices: cell phones and laptops (including netbooks). This is mainly due to limitations of 3G networks. Yes, they can cover large areas, but they’re limited in speed and capacity. This has led to a number of restrictions on their usage — companies limit both the types of devices which can connect to the network and the consumption levels of end users, usually capping them at 5GB per month. That could all change with more widespread 4G technology.
Despite worldwide financial shakiness, mobile broadband remains a growth industry. While that rate isn’t quite as high in America, across the Atlantic people are signing up for mobile broadband plans faster than ever. A recent study shows that mobile broadband subscriptions are outpacing their fixed line counterparts. This is no insignificant number: mobile broadband subscriptions project to around 600 million worldwide by the end of the year, while fixed line connections should number 500 million. Europe brings up the number, as around 1 in 5 people have mobile broadband connections. This signals the possibility of even greater growth over the next five years than originally projected.
