The Need for Speed Continues: AT&T Reports 3G Wireless Download Speeds of up to 1.7 Mbps for LaptopConnect Customers - a 20+ Percent Increase
As I anxiously await the pending announcement of the 3G iPhone, I am starting to examine just how fast is fast when it comes to 3G.
The phone company as we no longer know it, has announced that a more than 20 percent increase to the top end of the company's typical 3G network downlink speed range and a 50 percent increase to the top end of the typical uplink speed range for wireless laptop card customers¹. The upgrades are results of recent network enhancements, including the deployment of High Speed Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA) technology across all existing 3G markets before the end of June.
In both transitioning and ramping up for the new iPhone and for other customers with 3G phones, AT&T's 3G mobile broadband network is now available in more than 275 major U.S. metropolitan areas. Later this month, AT&T will become the first U.S. carrier to have fully deployed High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) technology across its entire 3G network. By year-end, the company plans to offer 3G service in nearly 350 major metropolitan U.S. areas. Even by Texas standards, that's a pretty big deal.
The new typical wireless broadband speeds for LaptopConnect customers¹:
Downlink — Between 700 Kbps (kilobits per second) and 1.7 Mbps (megabits per second), formerly 600 Kbps to 1.4 Mbps
Uplink — Between 500 Kbps and 1.2 Mbps, formerly 500 to 800 Kbps
Customers who use AT&T's LaptopConnect wireless cards can use these new speeds to access large files and multimedia applications faster than ever before¹. The new typical speed ranges reflect the results of recent measurements performed during thousands of tests in multiple markets.
The number of AT&T LaptopConnect subscribers increased more than 83 percent between the first quarters of 2007 and 2008, showing strong demand for on-the-go data use.
Between 2005 and the end 2008, AT&T will have invested more than $20 billion in network improvements and upgrades — an average of $5 billion a year. The company's HSPA network is in the best position among American carriers to grow in line with customer demand, evolving to HSPA+ and providing next-generation speeds through a software upgrade without costly investments across the breadth of the network. As HSPA technology evolves between 2009 and 2010 to HSPA+, peak speeds could reach 20 Mbps. AT&T plans to adopt LTE (Long Term Evolution) technology to reach even higher speeds in the longer term.
¹ LaptopConnect customers must be using one of AT&T's four current devices that support HSUPA technology or a laptop with embedded HSUPA technology. The four devices are: AT&T USBConnect 881, Sierra Wireless AirCard 881, Option GT Ultra and Option GT Ultra Express
