HTC’s head honcho Peter Chou said in an interview yesterday that they’re expecting to launch LTE-capable handsets in the U.S. in the second half of 2011. We were under the impression that Verizon was launching their LTE network and handsets very soon, and MetroPCS has already been live with 4G for a couple of months; that being said, the second half of next year seems a little far off to get the HTC Mech / Incredible HD, doesn’t it? AT&T is slated for mid-2011 LTE launch too, so maybe HTC will be one of their first manufacturer partners. In the interview, Chou says their focus is on Android and Windows phone, so either OS is a candidate for 4G goodness.
LTE’s going to be the real future for the next generation of wireless, which Sprint and Clearwire, champions of WiMAX “4G” are willing to admit. It won’t take long until T-Mobile has a hard time continuing to pass off HSPA+ as 4G, especially once AT&T launches their own LTE network.
It’s cool that HTC has that gonads to go on record with their plans, but no doubt the other manufacturers – Apple, RIM, Samsung, LG, Motorola – are all busy working away on their own LTE smartphones, though maybe being a little more quiet about it.
You can watch the full Peter Chou interview here so long as you have a GSMA membership.
[via GSMA]