T-Mobile USA launches rapid LTE expansion across US
Summary: The fourth largest US cellular networks flips the LTE switch on seven US cities, as it catches up with its nearest rivals in the cellular space.
NEW YORK — T-Mobile is ramping up its 4G LTE efforts across the US, the company announced today.
The LTE expansion will see a boost to seven US cities: Baltimore, Houston, Kansas City,Las Vegas, Phoenix, San Jose, Calif., and Washington, D.C. The firm said it will reach 100 million US residents by mid-2013, and 200 million US residents by the end of the year.
This is, according to T-Mobile chief executive officer John Legere, before T-Mobile receives complementary spectrum from the MetroPCS deal, set to close by mid-2013..
While other carriers have typically opened up their LTE services in smaller towns and cities to test their coverage and networks, T-Mobile is going in with the big guns by offering LTE services in the eight metropolitan hearts of the US.
Early indications suggest the LTE network is around 25Mbps, according to CNET, but T-Mobile said it is as high as 60Mbps.
The LTE-enabled iPhone 5 has also arrived on the network to show off the firm's flagship device next-generation speeds. Also included in T-Mobile's LTE launch are the BlackBerry Z10 — which launched nationwide this week — and the Samsung Galaxy S4; they will cost $99 each.
T-Mobile is smaller in subscriber base than AT&T, Verizon and Sprint, and it has fallen behind the times by failing to keep up to speed with others' next-generation LTE networks. Lacking an iPhone on the mobile roster also hurt the firm in the long run.
The fourth largest US cell network finally opened chapter two today by getting up to speed with its rivals.
T-Mobile started rolling out updates to Samsung Galaxy Note 2 smartphones last week, enabling support for the firm's 4G LTE network.
In the not so distant past, T-Mobile used its 1,700MHz spectrum for 3G and HSPA+ for its 4G service, while using its 1,900MHz spectrum for slower 2G (GPRS) and 2.5 (EDGE) services. T-Mobile is moving its 3G and HSPA+ services to the 1,900MHz band, which will free up space on the other side of the spectrum net, and at the same time make it easier for T-Mobile customers to tap into AT&T's larger 3G and HSPA+ network and vice-versa when roaming.
This also means that as T-Mobile plans to use the 1,700MHz spectrum for 4G LTE services, some AT&T markets will allow customers to dip into T-Mobile's network.
While the expansion to seven cities is a good start for T-Mobile, it still has a long way before it can catch up to even Sprint, its closest rival in the cell subscriber chain.
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Talkback
Unimpressed!
Exactly
THIS is the biggest reason T-Mo is shedding customers. NOT because they didn't have the iPhone, or an LTE network. They're "4G" is plenty fast for me, when I can get it. I just can't get it in 80% of the places I go every day. And that's on an average work day, sticking around town. T-Mobile seems to think that no one travels to different parts of the state or country. And, like you said, as soon as they do, they quickly realize how horrible the coverage actually is.
This will be my last year with T-Mobile. I haven't really checked, but I'm imagining that the "no contract" schtick only applies to new sign-ups. So I still have to wait out my 2-year contract. But as soon as it's over, I, too, will defect. Sure, T-Mobile's rates are nice and low (or, rather, where they rest of the industry truly should be, instead of the overly inflated prices everyone is charging now). But what good are cheap rates if you can't even use your phone when you would like to (or worse, when you NEED to).
Ever hear of the laws of physics?
Dead zones in Oregon you think is t-Mobiles exclusive domain? We used "ALL the above" in Oregon, AT&t Sprint, T-Mobile etc.. The hilly country of Oregon Washington, Idaho and Alaska , they don't work well with LINE of SIGHT broadcast technologies such as Cellular. You get some hick who won't lease out his hilltop to them for a cell tower, you get a dead zone, you get a military reserve, you get a dead zone, MANY things can block the equal grid network design of cell towers. Works GREAT in the Plains States, essentially flatlands. Even in Southern Arizona, cell works reasonably OK, but not in the north where mountain tops are often NOT Private lands but USDA, and thus most often kept free of cell towers. You speak of how T-Mobile should understand people get out of the basic city zones, well YOU try the same. accept that part of the things you give UP for living in Oregon is flat land QOS and capability. I own a 70,000 hectare farm in Ukraine, have given leases to the Ukrainian government for 173 cell towers, in order to keep the community UP with better service, but far too many Americans will not do so. In our parts of Europe, almost no one USES contract services. Prepaid is the way there.. almost exclusively. . You buy your phone at anything from a small street-corner vendor to a major mega market, buy your sim-card minutes the same way, but not always in the same place. There's virtually NO 4g LTE. TOO unreliable. So when I am in USA, i am happy for the service, when available, but i sure as heck can manage without it, and without the AT&T price tag that NEVER is the same from day to day. They have "creative billing" AKA, they create a bill for you, and the numbers are purely magic, conjured up from the thin air, based on your LTE consumption... T-Mobile has always offered perfectly good service in 43 of the 50 states our airline has depots in, thank you!. I'd rather not pay for trying to have a cell tower every square mile thus making a mountain top need to be blown away, a forest cut down or my Rocky Mountain West be replaced with Iowa or Texas...I understand that when in hill country i won't ALWAYS have service.. So many Americans expect the world belongs to them as an individual and THEY make the rules.. This planet was not designed with your cell needs in mind..so we have mountains and valleys and trees that block cells sometimes ;-)
T-Mobile worked better than AT&T on a recent trip.
Your mileage may vary
I tried a prepaid Sprint plan once. It didn't work were I lived. There was no reason to sign a contract with sprint when the 30 day prepaid "trial" was up, and I would have to pay a contract cancellation fee too!
I'll give TMobile LTE a try next. I get speeds close to cable-modem on my laptop modem, and it looks like they built a network in the past year just for the iPhone. They seem pretty quick to upgrade their network just for Apple.
Unimpressed!
I was the opposite
Completely Understand
great service
If Quality is King...
With the other three, you MIGHT get a faster connection speed, IF you can get connected and forget about calling someone in the places I go.
Just goes to show that different carriers work differently in different areas.
Benefit of LTE?
I used to think LTE was an unneeded service
I'm on VZW and simultaneous Talk and data only works in 4G mode so occasionally in 3g I have to wait on making the call regarding the email I'm sending.
I'm not claiming it is unneeded.
3G Speed vs. LTE