14 DAY TRIAL // Mobile phone carrier Verizon Wireless is getting ready for the roll-out of its Long Term Evolution-based 4G network, and has just announced that the field trials it is conducting in the United States have shown that the data transfer speeds the upcoming network will deliver are much faster than the ones offered by 3G networks today. The trials in Boston and Seattle resulted in peak download speeds of 40 to 50 megabits per second (Mbps), the carrier says, adding that the peak upload speeds registered were of 20 to 25 Mbps.
When compared to the existing 3G networks Verizon Wireless or other carriers in the country operate at the moment, the registered speeds are significantly faster. The wireless operator has been testing the upcoming 4G LTE network in both Boston and Seattle since August last year, and it managed to make successful calls involving streaming video, file uploads and downloads, and Web browsing. At the same time, the company announced that it made calls with Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), so that it could offer voice transmissions over the LTE network.
The mobile phone carrier also revealed that its engineers reported that the average data rates on LTE were of 5-12 Mbps on downlink, and of 2-5 Mbps on the uplink in real-world environments. The carrier notes that these performance levels should enable it to deliver to its customers mobile browsing speeds that are on par with what they can currently enjoy on typical online Internet.
“Our LTE rollout plan positions Verizon Wireless to be a global leader in 4G LTE deployment. We are on track to deliver an outstanding wireless data experience to customers in 25 to 30 markets covering roughly 100 million people by year’s end,” said Tony Melone, senior vice president and chief technical officer at Verizon Wireless. “As device makers, manufacturers and others around the world begin to introduce newer and faster products to take advantage of these incredible new speeds, Verizon Wireless will be positioned to offer our customers new and exciting products on the nation’s first 4G LTE network.”
Verizon Wireless is leveraging the 700 MHz spectrum for LTE roll-out in the US, and it should be able to deploy a high-quality wireless broadband network quite fast, while also being able to offer excellent coverage and in-building penetration. The carrier stated that it was already installing LTE equipment at its existing sites in the US as part of its ongoing investment in infrastructure.