It may be a while before the new cell standard known as Long Term Evolution (LTE) comes to your neck of the woods, but Verizon is already deep in testing of the new technology. They’ve been so good as to release some early speed estimates based on their tests in Boston and Seattle. The results are pretty good, but frankly not as good as we’d hoped.

According to Verizon’s PR statement, the LTE network is substantially faster than the current Ev-Do Rev. A network Big Red is running. This certainly doesn’t surprise anyone though. Verizon engineers were able to get an impressive 40-50Mbps down and 20-25Mbps up with ideal conditions. You know, the sort of ideal conditions you will basically never experience. Real world speeds should be around 5-12Mbps down and 2-5Mbps up.

This is nice (really, we’d love to get speeds like that on a cell network), but a little discouraging when you consider the theoretical max for this new LTE equipment is in the neighborhood of 100Mbps down. This is still preliminary, and the network could be stronger than expected when it rolls out to 25-30 markets later this year. With T-Mobile expected to bump up their data to HSPA+ 3G at 21Mbps maximum speed, the initial difference may not be as stark as we thought.

Both WiMAX and LTE are vying to be the successor to the current 3G mobile data standards. The first 4G LTE networks are going up around the world, but in the US they have yet to roll out. What we do see stateside is WiMAX 4G service beginning to crop up. Taking note of that, Dell has decided to offer a WiMAX option on the new version of the Mini 10.

The netbook has all the usual Wi-Fi 802.11 connectivity including the N standard. But that standard card can be replaced with a combo 802.11n/WiMAX card. This will give the system access to either Sprint 4G or Clearwire mobile broadband. The upgrade adds $60 to the price of the computer. If you want a new Mini 10 with all that 4G goodness, you can order now, but it won’t ship until early March.

Bummed that there's no such thing as an LTE (Long Term Evolution) router? Don't be, because ZyXEL, the China-based maker of various networking gear, today announced the ZLR-2070S, laying claim to the world's first LTE CPE/SOHO router.

"ZyXEL is excited to lead the LTE revolution by bringing innovative solutions to service providers," said Brian Feng, senior VP, Key accounts business unit for ZyXEL. "We are proud to offer service providers the ability to bring wireless high speed Internet access to millions, including those in under-served markets."

The new device comes with two VoIP ports, home networking capabilities via a four-port, 802.11n wireless switch, a USB port for printer sharing and storage devices, and data rates up to 50Mbps.

No word yet on price or availability, but ZyXEL did say it plans to demo the new unit during CES next month.

Image Credit: ZyXEL

T-Mobile, alongside Chinese telecoms manufacturer Huawei, has completed the first tests of a long-term evolution (LTE) self-organizing network (SON).

Huawei brought the SON technology to the table and integrated it with T-Mobiles already existing Enodebs to create a new type of network functionality, automatic neighbor relation. This essentially implements a network “buddy system” where base stations work together to modify the network topology in real-time for the best network-wide performance.

"As a pioneer in the development of next-generation mobile network, T-Mobile marked the next step in testing future technology with our test network in Innsbruck (Austria),” said Rüdiger Köster, technology director of T-Mobile Austria.

Mobile data networks have been slammed with criticism as they have failed to keep up with the epic demand of smart and cell phone growth. This technology is important to create scalable mobile networks that meet the demands of future devices and services.

It’s obvious that a gallon of milk won’t fit into a half gallon container. Same thing appears to be true for the short-term future of mobile communications: we are ‘pouring’ way too much of ourselves into a mobile communication system that isn’t capable of handling the flow. 3G mobile systems, it would appear, are in for some trying times.

The problem facing mobile phone carriers is pretty simple: smartphones are giving existing bandwidth a beating, especially by iPhone users; broadband pricing has been dropping as the market becomes more competitive, which encourages more use (especially with flat-rate plans); and 2G users are slowly, but surely, migrating into the 3G system. The outcome, according to a report by Unwired Insight, titled Will 3G Networks Cope?, there’ll be a 20-fold increase in demand over the next five years.

The solution Unwired Insight argues for is an accelerated implementation of the Long Term Evolution (LTE), or 4G network. LTE networks, which take advantage of scalable carrier bandwidths, have peak downlinks of 100 Mbps; uplinks of 50 Mbps, compared to 3G’s 14 Mbps downlink and 5.8 Mbps uplink maximums. (An upgraded version of 3G will boost downlinks to 42 Mbps, but that would only paper over a fairly severe gap.) Greater throughput will help to ease the load of all those smartphone users that have taken to browsing the web and viewing streaming media. Besides high throughput, LTE offers low latency, plug and play, and is compatible with existing GSM and CDMA architectures.

Problem is, mobile carriers are just beginning to put LTE to the test. Verizon appears to be ahead in the game, with testing taking place in Seattle and Boston. Deployment in 25-30 markets is expected in 2010.

If there is a bright side to all this LTE capable phones aren’t yet available. Kevin Fitchard, of TelephonyOnline, doesn’t expect to see these until 2010 at the earliest, despite iPhone rumors to the contrary.

Image Credit: smith/flickr

The deployment of new wireless standards is usually painfully slow. If Verizon is to be believed however, the rollout of the carrier’s LTE network could be lightning-fast by comparison. Verizon CTO Tony Melone said recently that the company had no intention of “teasing” customers with tiny LTE coverage areas, and promised the rollout “"will be as close to all-at-once as possible.”

LTE is a 4G standard that will replace Verizon’s current CDMA/EV-DO network. LTE will be able to use a significant part of the existing infrastructure, meaning faster deployment. Verizon hasn’t given any specific dates, but says that there will be 25 to 30 markets covered with LTE in 2010 alone. They expect their entire network to be switched over to LTE within two to three years.

Malone indicated that Verizon had already certified 55 devices for use on their LTE network, but many are not consumer level. When complete, the new network will support various types of smartphones, and other devices that require data connections, like e-readers.

Prepaid carrier MetroPCS will launch its 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) network in the second half of 2010. The company today announced its choice of vendors for the launch of its 4G service. It has chosen Ericsson as its infrastructure partner and Samsung as the provider of its first “dual-mode LTE/CDMA smartphone.”

With this announcement, MetroPCS has stolen a march on Verizon, as the latter plans to offer such a LTE handset only in 2011, although it too plans to launch its LTE service in 2010.

“As the Internet goes ‘mobile’ we are excited to be at the forefront of this wireless evolution with the building out of our 4G broadband data services. We anticipate to begin offering our 4G LTE services and a dual-mode LTE/CDMA smartphone in our major metropolitan markets in late 2010,” said Roger D. Linquist, president, chief executive officer and chairman of the board of MetroPCS.

Drawing ever closer to their goal of having a nationwide Long Term Evolution (LTE) 4G wireless network, Verizon completed their first LTE calls in Boston and Seattle earlier this month.

The calls consisted of small talk, streaming video, file uploads and downloads, as well as some Internet browsing. According to Tony Melone, Verizon’s senior vice president and chief technology officer, “Verizon Wireless, with outstanding cooperation from our partner suppliers, is fully committed to harnessing the power of LTE over our 700MHz spectrum. This combination of state-of-the art technology and prime spectrum will soon make a ubiquitous, highly mobile, super-fast broadband experience a reality for customers. This significant milestone in our LTE 4G network testing, exemplified by the first data calls in Boston and Seattle, further validates our early support and decision to select LTE as the standard for our next-generation wireless broadband network.”

Verizon hopes to extend their LTE 4G network to 30 more markets in 2010, which they claim will cover 100 million people. This would be the last major milestone before their nationwide network, set to appear in 2013.

Image Credit: Verizon Wireless

Google must be pleased to see the market for 3G netbooks swelling at a time when it is preparing to launch Chrome OS. Market research firm iSuppli anticipates 3G netbooks – those with embedded wireless broadband – to become even more popular in the next few years, as always-on internet becomes an integral part of the whole netbook experience. iSuppli expects 3G netbook shipments to increase by over 70%, as compared to the previous year, to reach 17.8 million units this year.

But a spike in netbook shipments doesn’t imply that it would be smooth sailing for Google’s Chrome OS. “Google must counter the high visibility of the Microsoft brand name on countless products in retail outlets, ranging from software, to PCs, to peripherals,” iSuppli advised Google.

Image Credit: Gizmodo