Verizon Wireless on Thursday confirmed that its 4G LTE network is now available in Mobile and Montgomery, Alabama; Greater Fairfield and New Haven, Connecticut; Gainesville Pensacola and Tallahassee Florida; Fayetteville-Lumberton, North Carolina; and Bryan-College Station and Temple-Killeen, Texas. The nation’s largest wireless carrier also said that it’s expanding the 4G footprint that is already available in Atlanta, Chicago, Denver, New Orleans, and Philadelphia, to cover more customers. Verizon’s chief technical officer, David Small, said that Verizon’s 4G LTE network is now available in 55 metropolitan areas and that the carrier plans to expand its 4G LTE footprint to match its entire 3G coverage area by the end of 2013. Hit the jump for the full press release.
VERIZON WIRELESS LAUNCHES NINE NEW 4G LTE MARKETS TODAY AND EXPANDS 4G LTE NETWORK IN FIVE MAJOR CITIES
BASKING RIDGE, N.J. – Verizon Wireless is turning on the world’s most advanced wireless network in nine additional metropolitan areas today, as well as expanding the 4G LTE network in Atlanta, Chicago, Denver, New Orleans and Philadelphia. The wireless leader announced today the 4G LTE network is now available in Mobile and Montgomery Ala.; Greater Fairfield and New Haven, Conn.; Gainesville, Pensacola and Tallahassee, Fla.; Fayetteville-Lumberton, N.C.; and Bryan-College Station and Temple-Killeen, Texas.
David Small, chief technical officer for Verizon Wireless, noted, “We’re now offering consumers and businesses in 55 metropolitan areas the most advanced 4G wireless network on the planet, while continuing to offer the nation’s most reliable 3G network coast to coast. We plan to bring 4G LTE mobile broadband to our entire 3G coverage area by the end of 2013.”
Consumers can choose from several devices to access the blazingly fast speeds of the 4G LTE network, including the newly-launched DROID Charge by Samsung and ThunderBolt™ by HTC smartphones, MiFi® 4510L 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot and Samsung 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot. Laptop users can enjoy speeds up to 10 times faster than the company’s 3G network with three USB modems from Novatel, Pantech and LG. In real-world, fully-loaded network environments, 4G LTE users should experience average data rates of 5 to 12 megabits per second (Mbps) on the downlink and 2 to 5 Mbps on the uplink.
When customers travel outside of a 4G coverage area, the devices automatically connect to Verizon Wireless’ 3G network, enabling customers to stay connected from coast to coast. Verizon Wireless’ 3G network is the most reliable network in the country, allowing customers with laptops and smartphones to download and use cool apps, from mobile social networking platforms to GPS-enabled maps. Customers can also can rapidly browse the Web to keep up with news, sports, stock quotes, Hollywood gossip and more, work on-the-go with fast file sharing and stream must-see video and customized radio stations. Customers in 3G coverage areas today who purchase 4G devices will be able to take advantage of 4G speeds when the faster network becomes available in their areas.
As the first wireless company in the world to broadly deploy game-changing 4G LTE technology, Verizon Wireless is committed to building its 4G network with the same performance and reliability for which it has long been recognized. Verizon Wireless’ consistent focus on reliability is based on rigid engineering standards and a disciplined deployment approach year after year. The company’s 700 MHz spectrum gives Verizon Wireless specific advantages with 4G, including a contiguous, nationwide network license.
Verizon Wireless’ vision also includes bringing its 4G LTE network beyond major cities. The company is working with rural communications companies to collaboratively build and operate a 4G network in those areas using the tower and backhaul assets of the rural company and Verizon Wireless’ core 4G LTE equipment and premium 700 MHz spectrum. Already, 10 rural companies have signed on to leverage Verizon Wireless’ scale for infrastructure while keeping their customers on the cutting edge of technology, including Bluegrass Cellular, Cross Telephone, Pioneer Cellular, Cellcom, Thumb Cellular, Strata Networks, S&R Communications, Carolina West / Clear Stream, Custer Telephone Cooperative and Convergence Technologies.
While Verizon Wireless’ 3G network covers more than 290 million Americans, the company’s 4G LTE network is already available in 55 metropolitan areas, including:
· Mobile Ala.
· Montgomery Ala.
· Phoenix, Ariz.
· Los Angeles, Calif.
· Oakland, Calif.
· San Diego, Calif.
· San Francisco, Calif.
· San Jose, Calif.
· Denver, Colo.
· Greater Fairfield and New Haven, Conn.
· Washington, D.C.
· Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
· Gainesville, Fla.
· Jacksonville, Fla.
· Miami, Fla.
· Orlando, Fla.
· Pensacola, Fla.
· Tallahassee, Fla.
· Tampa, Fla.
· West Palm Beach, Fla.
· Athens, Ga.
· Atlanta, Ga.
· Chicago, Ill.
· West Lafayette, Ind.
· New Orleans, La.
· Baltimore, Md.
· Boston, Mass.
· Detroit, Mich.
· Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minn.
· St. Louis, Mo.
· Las Vegas, Nev.
· New York, N.Y.
· Rochester, N.Y.
· Charlotte, N.C.
· Fayetteville-Lumberton, N.C.
· Wilmington, N.C.
· Akron, Ohio
· Cincinnati, Ohio
· Cleveland, Ohio
· Columbus, Ohio
· Oklahoma City, Okla.
· Allentown/Bethlehem/Easton, Pa.
· Philadelphia, Pa.
· Pittsburgh, Pa.
· Columbia, S.C.
· Hilton Head, S.C.
· Clarksville, Tenn./Hopkinsville, Ky.
· Cleveland, Tenn.
· Nashville, Tenn.
· Bryan-College Station, Texas
· Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas
· Houston, Texas
· San Antonio, Texas
· Temple-Killeen, Texas
· Seattle, Wash.Since 2007, when Verizon Wireless jump-started the global 4G LTE ecosystem with its selection of LTE for its 4G technology, the company has developed deep partnerships to spearhead a broad LTE ecosystem, with many being fostered at the LTE Innovation Center in Waltham, Mass., and the Application Innovation Center, slated to open in San Francisco later this year.
