T-Mobile Gearing Up for HSPA+ Upgrades

One of the upcoming improvements that T-mobile customers will certainly enjoy when available is the upcoming HSPA+ roll-out the wireless carrier has in store for the ongoing year. The upgrade is expected to result in theoretical speeds of 21 Mbps on the downlink, which will make its network the fastest one in the country when upgraded.

As most of you might already know, the carrier has already started testing the upgrade on its network in Philadelphia, and now it shared a few more details on its roll-out plans. According to gigaom, which had a chat with T-Mobile’s Dave Mayo, VP of engineering, the first cities in the United States to enjoy the new speeds on the carrier's network are those located on the coasts.

Dave Mayo stated that T-Mobile planned on bringing the HSPA+ goodness to major cities along the California Coast, as well as to major cities from the East Coast, from Washington, D.C. to Boston, including Philadelphia. The news site also notes that no exact timing on when the HSPA software will be updated have been unveiled, but that the carrier might be expecting for “devices and better backhaul” before firing it up.

“Currently T-Mobile has about 10 devices that can use its existing HSPA network, which offers download speeds of up to 7.2 Mbps and no HSPA+ capable gadgets. The relatively young 3G network was rolled out in 2008, but has several compelling devices such as the Nexus One, the MyTouch and unlocked iPhones scavenged from AT&T’s network. AT&T is currently deploying HSPA coverage, but will skip HSPA+ and go straight to the Long Term Evolution network beginning with trials in 2011,” gigaom notes.

T-Mobile is also said to be the only US carrier which has plans for rolling-out an HSPA+ network, yet the technology is already used by more than 25 operators around the world. When fired up, the network is expected to deliver competitive speeds, being able to out pace those provided by WiMAX, and also be getting close to what LTE has to offer. It seems that T-Mobile is indeed confident that its network will offer fast surfing experience for customers, and it will prove a great option for users looking for both voice and data services.