As smartphones are penetrating the market, networks are feeling the strain on their ability to serve up the kind of speed needed to keep customers happy.
It’s official. The next tablet Sprint will release will be 4G and it will be in the upcoming year. This is quite the upgrade since it was only several weeks ago that Sprint released its 3G Samsung Galaxy Tab, which runs on the Google-owned, Android operating system. Another surprise Sprint disclosed this past week? The new tablet may run on another operating system.
There are plenty of operating systems for Sprint to choose from: Windows, HP’s Palm webOS system and Research in Motion’s Playbook operating system. RIM seems to be the most suitable choice for Sprint as the RIM Blackberry Playbook is turning out to have many consumers interested, even months prior to its release. At this rate, Sprint could only hope to surpass Blackberry Playbook speculation with a press release of its own concerning the future Sprint 4G tablet.
Sprint is not scared of the ramifications of surprising consumers with a new tablet months after the release of its first tablet, especially with the 4G element. Many Sprint customers are skeptical of the fact that Sprint released its first tablet on a 3G system two years after the company had already been working with 4G WiMAX technologies. There has already been some criticism from Sprint customers following this release that it may be better to just wait another couple of months for the same release from Verizon. Can Sprint really trust its customers to wait for them to get their acts together about what to release when?
Sprint certainly seems to think so. “We’ve been in this market for over two years,” Paget Alves, Sprint’s President of Business Markets, told Forbes. “We’ve had a lot of time to work with our customers and build up a portfolio of 4G devices and services.” Reliability will pay out, at the end of the day. Also, the branding of all fast networks as 4G will “eventually backfire,” Alves added. “Throwing around that term will make it less meaningful,” Alves said. “Then it will be more about delivering what people expect from a ‘4G’ experience.” This may well be a stab at T-Mobile who has also announced plans for a 4G-branded HSPA+ tablet.
Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint are the companies leading the way for this new product. They exude confidence during technology fairs concluding that the 4G revolution is upon us. They’ve developed products to help connect to the network such as portable modems, usb drives, and sim cards. They’ve even entitled their networks; Sprint’s being WIMAX (World-wide Interoperability for Microwave Access) while Verizon and AT&T’s shall be called LTE (Long Term Evolution). However, perhaps their confidence is missed guided and their promise of debuting in 2013 is unrealistic.
WIMAX developed by the Sprint and Clear companies respectively, seems to be losing ground in the United States amidst their attempt to bring WIMAX success domestically. Though they’ve raised 3.2 billion dollars in investments to produce the network, Sprint and Clear may have underestimated how expensive it is to blanket the country in connectivity. Sprint, the lesser of the three major telecommunications distributors in the country, may not have enough currency to continue production if the 3.2 billion isn’t enough, and investors Google, Time Warner, and Intel may grow weary of waiting and pull their investments early. Also those dependent on their WIMAX’s success is far less than those who are dependent on LTE”s success due to the fact that Verizon and AT&T are far larger companies. … Read the rest
Comcast Corporation recently began offering its High-Speed 2go service in 10 additional markets. Baltimore, Richmond and Washington D.C. all now can experience 4G speeds from Comcast. It will also offer the services in the Pennsylvania markets of Harrisburg, York, Scranton, Reading, Lancaster, State College and Lebanon.
The High-Speed to go offers both 3G and 4G coverage in the available markets. The service will be bundled with their Internet, phone and television services. It’s mobile broadband internet wherever customers need it.
“The world-class services Comcast is known for in the home are beginning to be extended to anywhere consumers work, live and play with the launch of Comcast’s High-Speed 2go mobile solution,” Rick Lang, senior vice president of marketing and sales for Comcast’s Eastern Division, said, “Comcast continues to drive innovation in the industry and this launch gives customers the best of both worlds — the fastest fast at home and on the go as a natural extension of our super fast wired high-speed Internet.”
The High-Speed 2go Nationwide Preferred wireless data card operates on both the 3G/4G networks and splits between the two networks. Comcast is now offering a 4G only data cards in Philadelphia as High-Speed 2go Metro service. It’s the fastest mobile Internet connection available when in market.
Comcast uses Sprint’s 3G network when not covered by the 4G connection. Comcast was also an investor in Clearwire. Google, Brighthouse Networks and Sprint also invested money into the 4G network builder. Clearwire is the company that sets up the 4G networks using WiMAX technology. If CLEAR isn’t in the market, then Comcast can’t offer the 4G connection. The company offers different devices, including CLEAR spots, mobile routers. They’re the only 4G operator that offers home modems along with a series of USB modems. Sprint owns a majority share in Clearwire, but… Read the rest
Clearwire raised around $290.8 million in a stock sale. The company offered 93,903,300 shares of Class A common stock, valued at $7.33 per share. The end results show that 39.7 million shares of Class A common stock were purchased for the final price. There was potential to raise $361 with all the stock rights offered.
Clearwire has a great track record of raising money through stock offering and partnerships with wholesalers and tech companies. Google, Brighthouse, Comcast, Time Warner and Sprint all invested hundreds of millions of dollars last year. That was to help with the build out of more networks in 2010, including adding markets in Houston, Baltimore and other launches in 2010.
The company has said it will spend between $2.8 and $3.2 billion building out their network this year. CLEAR service is offered in 24 markets, with plans to launch markets in New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles by the end of 2010. This funding should go a long way to finish the network build out this year. It might also help Clearwire switch 4G technologies, from WiMAX to LTE.
Clearwire lost money during the first quarter of 2010, but it added more subscribers during that period than all of 2009. Thing are looking up for the 4G carrier, getting an advantage of being first to market with 4G wireless broadband. They’ll soon have competition in the market. Verizon Wireless plans on launching LTE in 25-30 markets by the end of 2010.… Read the rest
The first WiMAX-enabled phone available in the U.S. could transform how you conduct business. The HTC EVO 4G will allow users to stream live video while sending large files for a presentation. This was not capable under the previous 3G wireless internet connection. 4G WiMAX allows speedy, reliable transfer of data like large files and video that won’t get dropped.
The 8MP auto-focus camera with HD-capable video camcorder and front-facing 1.3MP camera allows users to take pictures and broadcast that video across the fastest wireless network available. The voice and data capabilities in 4G markets means users can view documents while the conversation continues. Customers may also determine the location of a customer meeting while talking with a colleague. The HTC EVO 4G also works as a mobile hotspot for travelers and business owners looking for a mobile office. The HTC EVO 4G will revolutionize how business gets down through a WiMAX network.
The EVO 4G uses the Android operating system from Google, meaning businesses have the opportunity to download many different applications from the Android Market. There’s the Xora mobile workforce management solution. There’s a mobile time sheet feature that simplifies the payroll process by integrating to payroll systems like ADP. Intuit extends payment services that allows business owners outside the office to process credit card payments on the EVO 4G without requiring additional hardware.
“As workforces become more mobile, employees need the speed and capacity to enable high-bandwidth transactions, like viewing or sending real-time video, or video monitoring of off-site locations,” Tom Roberts, vice president of Business Marketing, Sprint, said, “With 4G and HTC EVO 4G, the possibilities for business are endless.”
Data/voice plans range from $59.99 per month per user to $179.99 per month per user. Business Advantage plans feature anytime minutes, available to all users on the account. A mandatory $10 per month Premium Data add-on allows customers to take advantage of a better data experience on the HTC EVO 4G. There’s also an additional fee of $29.99 to turn the HTC EVO 4G into a mobile hot spot.
Sprint also offers the Overdrive mobile hot spot and a selection of USB modems that connect to the 4G network. Currently, There are 33 markets with 4G connections, covering 41million people. The company plans on launching networks in Los Angeles, Boston, New York and Cleveland by the end of 2010. They plan on covering 120 million … Read the rest
