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AT&T Prepares to Launch LTE 4G Network in 5 Cities This Summer

Yeah, most people won't be able to tell the difference between 3G and 4G in real world use. But it will matter in marketing (just like in megapixels in cameras). People think that higher numbers = better. So they'll see 3G in some phones and 4G on others and assume 4G must be better.

So I hope the next iPhone has 4G even if few people can make use of it.
 
Funny article. AT&T hasn't even gotten to close to rolling out its 3G network and now they're teasing us with the promise of 4G.
 
Yawn.... wake me up when 4G is not hype but reality in most markets.

I love it when they (all the carriers) advertise 4G here in NE PA and I don't think we'll see it for at least 2 years yet.
 
nwcs said:
Yeah, most people won't be able to tell the difference between 3G and 4G in real world use. But it will matter in marketing (just like in megapixels in cameras). People think that higher numbers = better. So they'll see 3G in some phones and 4G on others and assume 4G must be better.

So I hope the next iPhone has 4G even if few people can make use of it.
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??? there is a drastic speed difference between 3G and 4G, speak for yourself!

Popeye206 said:
Yawn.... wake me up when 4G is not hype but reality in most markets.

I love it when they (all the carriers) advertise 4G here in NE PA and I don't think we'll see it for at least 2 years yet.
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I would say VZW getting to 78 markets since Jan. is pretty damn good, of course it's going to take longer to get to small cities.
 
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_3_3 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8J2 Safari/6533.18.5)

I am assuming Golden Valley, MN is in phase 2. :)
 
xxBURT0Nxx said:
??? there is a drastic speed difference between 3G and 4G, speak for yourself!
Click to expand...
There is when both are working normally but the average person of whom I spoke won't notice that much difference in many cases. If something comes up in 1 second in 3G it won't show up in 0.1 second in 4G. Other factors such as application speed and rendering and latency negate some of the speed. It's like speeding on the road in town. Sure it seems fast until you hit the traffic light and the person you passed ends up right behind you before it turns green.
 
This is a good thing. A 4g LTE tower can serve a bigger area than a 3g tower. This means they'll be able to cover more area with less infrastructure. Granted they'll have to put more bandwidth capacity at each site. This should mean better coverage, better speeds for everyone on 4g .
 
Carriers are devolving into dumb pipes

Real 4G, which we won't see before 2013 at the very earliest, combines voice and data into a single IP packet stream. An internet packet stream just like the one your ISP handles.

That's the carriers' motivation for calling LTE "4G." They want to establish "4G" branding as soon as possible, while there still is a distinction between voice and data connections. They want to continue charging separately for big-minute voice plans and tiered data plans, even after they are merged into a single bit stream.

Why? Because they can make more money by charging separately for voice and data. Subscribers have been trained for years to accept that separation. Your ISP doesn't charge separately for email and Netflix. AT&T and all the others will try to charge separately for voice and data. I don't think that will last long.
 
nwcs said:
There is when both are working normally but the average person of whom I spoke won't notice that much difference in many cases. If something comes up in 1 second in 3G it won't show up in 0.1 second in 4G. Other factors such as application speed and rendering and latency negate some of the speed. It's like speeding on the road in town. Sure it seems fast until you hit the traffic light and the person you passed ends up right behind you before it turns green.
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obviously you aren't going to notice differences on tasks that take 1 second... how about youtube videos, loading graphic intensive web pages, google maps rendering, there are many things where you WILL see the difference. Sorry but you are wrong if you think the difference is unnoticeable. If you think it doesn't, try turning 3G off on your phone and run around on edge all day and tell me it isn't dog **** sloooooow!
 
SockRolid said:
Real 4G, which we won't see before 2013 at the very earliest, combines voice and data into a single IP packet stream. An internet packet stream just like the one your ISP handles.

That's the carriers' motivation for calling LTE "4G." They want to establish "4G" branding as soon as possible, while there still is a distinction between voice and data connections. They want to continue charging separately for big-minute voice plans and tiered data plans, even after they are merged into a single bit stream.

Why? Because they can make more money by charging separately for voice and data. Subscribers have been trained for years to accept that separation. Your ISP doesn't charge separately for email and Netflix. AT&T and all the others will try to charge separately for voice and data. I don't think that will last long.
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this. truth.
 
Enlighten me!!!
Why so many people moan about lack of 4G in next iPhone? Why do you really need it for at current speed demanded by apps or another programs available on iphone? 3G is more than good enough for me and I DO a lot.
The same apply to NFC technology. How many places do you really have (I mean for average iphone user) around you with that technology available to you? Is it safe? Is it? You will change your mind when someone rob you of your money on local bus by using some sort of "smart" device which can read through all NFC devices just like that. Then what? Ooops...we have never thought about that...but... is fixed now-they will say. Yea...until next time.
All what I say is let Apple take time to developed matching and safe technology. There is no need for rush to have it NOW.
 
we already got LTE in lots of areas here, mostly for people that still can't get broadband. it's indeed crazy fast. its like 19 Euro for voice AND data! + 50 mbit/s inet but only 30 GB before they slow u down to 3G speed
 
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SockRolid said:
Real 4G, which we won't see before 2013 at the very earliest, combines voice and data into a single IP packet stream. An internet packet stream just like the one your ISP handles.

That's the carriers' motivation for calling LTE "4G." They want to establish "4G" branding as soon as possible, while there still is a distinction between voice and data connections. They want to continue charging separately for big-minute voice plans and tiered data plans, even after they are merged into a single bit stream.

Why? Because they can make more money by charging separately for voice and data. Subscribers have been trained for years to accept that separation. Your ISP doesn't charge separately for email and Netflix. AT&T and all the others will try to charge separately for voice and data. I don't think that will last long.
Click to expand...


so will it make you happy if the carriers just charge everyone $100 per month or some tiered all in one prices depending on which services you want?

A LOT of people don't really care about data on a phone at this point. and it won't change in 2013 either
 
alent1234 said:
so will it make you happy if the carriers just charge everyone $100 per month or some tiered all in one prices depending on which services you want?

A LOT of people don't really care about data on a phone at this point. and it won't change in 2013 either
Click to expand...

like i said, 19 bucks for voice and data here and its 2011. not everyone is as slow as the US and gets billed for tethering too lolol
 
Ryeno said:
No major cities = fails.

New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco these are the cities that matter not Chicago, Atlanta and Houston.
Click to expand...

There's so much wrong with what you just said.
1) Dallas is AT&T Corp.'s headquarters.
2) Atlanta, Chicago and Houston have a larger metropolitan area compared to San Francisco.
3) Atlanta is the headquarters for AT&T Mobility.
4) Chicago doesn't matter?
 
I know there are a lot of haters, but the AT&T 3G network is the best mobile network I've used (yes, that definitely includes Verizon).

4G is just another excuse for AT&T to try and get rid of my unlimited data plan.
 
cooldaddybeck said:
I know there are a lot of haters, but the AT&T 3G network is the best mobile network I've used (yes, that definitely includes Verizon).

4G is just another excuse for AT&T to try and get rid of my unlimited data plan.
Click to expand...

Unlimited data is unlimited data. Doesn't matter whether you're on Edge, 3G or 4G. It carries over.

And the real reason they're capping data? They want to cut down on people using Google Voice.
 
AT&T is the worst. Their service is absolute garbage where I am, and I don't live in a low-population area. I'm in a major metro area.

I switched to Verizon and not only got better service but am saving money. My VZW 4G speed is SMOKIN' fast.

BTW have you seen any AT&T 4G tests?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CvG3Z3fPPk

My friend has an iPhone with AT&T and his 3G is faster than this 4G test LOL!!!!!
 
benthewraith said:
Unlimited data is unlimited data. Doesn't matter whether you're on Edge, 3G or 4G. It carries over.

And the real reason they're capping data? They want to cut down on people using Google Voice.
Click to expand...

Umm Google Voice still uses minutes. It is not a data service. It is not like Skype but instead just bridges your number with your google number.
 
MacLawyer said:
If Apple is to be believed, 4G is a battery killer. Even at 3G speeds, my son-in-law's HTC Thunderbolt can barely make it 8 hours in light use. And that's WITH a battery pack.

I suppose in a couple of years the technology will be such that these issues will be gone, whether it's an Apple or Android machine.
Click to expand...

That's odd, because I too have an HTC Thunderbolt and go to school in a 4G area. My battery lasts a whole day.
 
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