Regional carrier U.S. Cellular said it would be rolling out 4G LTE to more than 25 percent of its network by the holiday season.
The company didn’t give exact figures on what types of speeds we can expect but the Verizon 4G LTE network on devices like the Droid Charge routinely get 5 Mbps down, so that should be a starting point. The service will roll out in Iowa, Wisconsin, Maine, North Carolina, Texas and Oklahoma.
“With 4G LTE, our customers will have faster connections to the people, information and entertainment that enhance their lives and help them stay organized,” said Mary N. Dillon, president and CEO of U.S. Cellular, in a prepared statement. “In addition to our line-up of cutting-edge devices, customers who switch to U.S. Cellular get unique benefits like faster phone upgrades without continuously signing contracts, and join the happiest customers in wireless.”
I remember when 4G was a bullet point on carriers’ road maps and we’re finally seeing it being rolled out to the masses. The U.S. Cellular 4G LTE rollout may not impact as many of you as Verizon’s but pretty soon, every carrier will have some form of 4G.
Sprint has had its WiMax network out for more than a year now and it has a respectable lineup of smartphones – I can’t wait to play with the EVO 3D. T-Mobile is calling its HSPA+ network “4G” and you can quibble with the labeling if you want but I know that getting 21 Mbps down is a cool thing.
AT&T is also planning to roll out LTE but much of that may depend on when or if the T-Mobile acquisition closes. Even MetroPCS has an LTE network deployed and it’s getting bigger nearly every day.
It’s still going to take some time for this to hit the mainstream but the mobile data future is here. Hooray.