4G WiMAX and LTE Latest Updates

The race for 4G technology is really starting to heat up as CLEAR and Sprint continue to expand coverage, Sprint released their much anticipated HTC EVO, Verizon announced LTE test markets and reports LTE capable phones are in the works! Below are the latest updates in the world of 4G:

WiMAX Coverage News:

Both Sprint and CLEAR have been working hard to bring 4G WiMAX to the following new markets, Richmond, Salt Lake City, St. Louis, Kansas City and expanding coverage in Baltimore. CLEAR has also expanded coverage to Merced and Visalia, California; Eugene, Oregon; and Rochester and Syracuse, New York. Throughout the summer they plan to have coverage in 20 more major cities. On a more unofficial note, there have also been reports from customers in parts of New York and California that they are seeing 4G on their devices, despite the fact that 4G has not yet launched there.

WiMAX Equipment:

On June 4th, 2010 was the date that the HTC EVO was released, the worlds first 3G/4G capable phone! This phone is all about changing the way people use their phones with features such as the mobile hotspot (allowing you to use your EVO's 3G/4G connection to share with up to 8 devices via wireless). The device has been so popular, you currently can't find it in any stores as we all wait anxiously for another shipment. If touchscreen only devices aren't your style, Samsung has come to the rescue with the announcement of the Samsung Epic. This device will be the first 3G/4G phone with a full QWERTY keyboard.

As for WiMAX aircards, Sprint's Overdrive had gotten off to a rocky start because of some firmware issues, however, they have released a new firmware version 2.06.06 which has fixed the issue's users were complaining about. When ordering the Overdrive from 3Gstore, we make sure that every Overdrive shipped has version 2.06.06 pre-installed for you! Sprint has also released the new 250U 3G/4G aircard, which is the first device that includes the option for both a 3G and 4G antenna port (antennas currently work on 3G only). CLEAR announced that they'll be releasing 3G/4G portable hot-spots in July, which have been demanded ever since the popularity of the MiFi2200 3G devices.

LTE News:

As Sprint and CLEAR continue to expand coverage, Verizon has been focusing on their final testing phases (user trials in 5 markets - Boston, Seattle and 3 other unnamed cities). In early May, Verizon showed off their LTE network for the first time in Boston and the results were impressive. During the demonstrations they managed to get an 8.55Mbps download speed and a 2.8Mbps upload speed. Rural users can also start getting excited because they plan to partner with local companies that already have towers and backhaul available - Verizon will provide the LTE equipment and let the local providers manage the towers and backhaul. This strategy is planned to help them meet their goal of covering their entire 3G footprint with full 4G LTE coverage by 2013. Tips are also rolling in, rumoring that Verizon will be launching their 4G LTE service in 25 markets on 11/15/10, with several LTE handsets to follow on "Black Friday", which this year falls on 11/26.

LTE Equipment:

With the rumored LTE release date of 11/15, reports of various handset manufactures developing LTE handsets continue to roll in. RIM (manufacturers of Blackberry) is currently working one of the first LTE handsets for Verizon's LTE! This phone is being dubbed the BlackBerry Storm 3 has some impressive rumored spec's. The phone supposedly will feature a 1Ghz Processor, 1GB of RAM and 8GB of storage. Aside from the storm there might be up to five other LTE phones by next May, from manufacturers such as Motorola, HTC, LG and BlackBerry.

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Things are certainly heating up as we move through the summer months! We're sure there will be plenty of new devices in the upcoming months and can't wait to see Verizon's network first hand. That's all for now, 4G-lovers, but keep coming back for the latest updates at 4ginfo.com, and join in the 4G discussion on the 4G Forums!

2009 in Review: The Year of 4G!

This has been a really exciting year for 4G services! This time last year, 4G services were available in just a select few markets, and after just one year Sprint/CLEAR have expanded their WiMAX coverage to over 30 markets, several new devices made their debut, and Verizon made sure we didn't forget that LTE is on the way. Lets take a look at the highlights of 4G in 2009!

• Sprint/Clearwire Expands 4G WiMax Coverage To New Markets:

• Abilene, TX
• Amarillo, TX
• Atlanta, GA
• Austin, TX
• Bellingham, WA
• Boise, ID
• Chicago, IL
• Corpus Christi, TX
• Dallas / Fort Worth, TX
• Greensboro, NC
• Honolulu, HI
• Killeen, TX
• Las Vegas, NV
• Lubbock, TX
• Maui, HI
• Midland / Odessa, TX
• Milledgeville, GA
• Philadelphia, PA
• Portland, OR
• Raleigh, NC
• Salem, OR
• San Antonio, TX
• Seattle, WA
• Waco, TX
• Witchita Falls, TX

• Cradlepoint integrates support for the new 4G devices onto their router line with a firmware update.

• Sprint, Clearwire’s largest shareholder, expanded it’s network onto the Clearwire infrastructure to become the first national 3G/4G carrier.

• Sprint announced the U301 3G/4G Hybrid Modem, the first Mac-compatible 3G/4G Hybrid device

• Samsung announced and released the Mondi, the first "MID" or Mobile Internet Device to work on the Clear network.

• Verizon completed its initial tests on its LTE network in two lucky cities, Boston and Seattle, and promised coverage to 25-30 markets in 2010.

Going into the new year, we are looking forward to seeing many new developments and advances in 4G. Things that we will be watching for this year include:

• CLEAR and Sprint 4G further expanding their 4G coverage to new markets
• WiMAX-enabled phones (Sprint & LG To Unveil WiMax 4G Phone at CES?)
• Verizon to launch their 4G LTE service
• 3Gstore.com (4Ginfo's sister site) will begin selling Clear & Sprint 4G products and services in the very near future - check 3Gstore.com/clear for updates!
  

It looks like 2010 is going to be a very exciting year for 4G services, so stay tuned for the latest news & information!

Summer of 4G Recap - Whats New With WiMAX and LTE

These past few months have been exciting times for fans of 4G, from the early adopters who've been waiting for 4G for years to the folks who hadn't even heard of the technology until it became available in their city. We've seen expansion like crazy, the forming of strategic partnerships, and the beginning of a long drawn out battle between WiMAX and LTE for 4G supremacy. Need to catch up on your 4G news? Here's what's been going on this summer:

Clearwire greatly increased the size of its slice of 4G pie by expanding into Las Vegas, Atlanta, and several other cities this summer.

Sprint, Clearwire’s largest shareholder, expanded it’s network onto the Clearwire infrastructure to become the first national 3G/4G carrier.

Comcast Cable and Time Warner Cable, who are both investors in Clearwire, launch (and announce plans to do so) their 4G service on the Clear networks.

Cradlepoint integrates support for the new 4G devices onto their router line with a firmware update.

Samsung announces and releases the Mondi, the first "MID" or Mobile Internet Device to work on the Clear network.

Northern Michigan University becomes one of the first educational institutions to employ WiMAX as an alternative to campus wide Wifi hotspots.

Verizon also joined in the fray, completing its initial tests on its LTE network in two luck cities, Boston and Seattle.

For more updates on 4G, and for all the current news, check back with us regularly here on the 4G blog, and at 4ginfo.com!

Clear 4G/WiMAX Launch Party on 7/21

Grab you're party hats and laptops everyone! Clear 4G WiMAX is "officially" coming to Las Vegas (it's been "unofficially" active since early June). In honor of the event, Clear is throwing a launch party at the Town Square Mall on Las Vegas Blvd. Stop on by to learn more information about Clear, or visit one of the several stores now open in the Las Vegas Valley.

Launch Party Details
Tuesday July 21, 2009
4PM-8PM

Clear Retail Store Town Square Mall
6605 Las Vegas Blvd South, Las Vegas, NV

Don't forget that you can always get ALL the latest and greatest WiMAX and 4G news on 4Ginfo.com!

Atlanta Gets Clear!

At last, Clearwire has added a second market to their CLEAR network!

(And no, I'm not counting Baltimore, which is still mired in a state of XOHM/Clear confusion).

The lucky market to get Clear WiMAX coverage is Atlanta, and judging by the coverage map provided by Clearwire, the coverage area is fairly large and much of the metro and surrounding area should be covered:

Click for larger view of the Atlanta coverage map

Earlier this year Clearwire promised coverage for Atlanta as well as Las Vegas, Chicago, Charlotte, Dallas/Ft. Worth, Honolulu, Philadelphia, and Seattle, but hadn't made any apparent progress until the inclusion of Atlanta on the Clear site this week. Hopefully the launch of Atlanta means that users in Vegas, Chicago, et al can count on getting CLEAR themselves this year, too!

Discuss Clearwire's coverage in Atlanta on the 4G Forums!

Cradlepoint Firmware 1.5.1 Provides Support for WiMAX USB Modems

Cradlepoint, who manufactures some of the best 3G EVDO/HSPA routers on the market, have created a firmware update for several of their popular routers that allows users to share their WiMAX service!

Cradlepoint had released a new firmware version for the MBR1000, CTR500, CBA250, and MBR800 routers that provides support for the Clear USB modem, Sprint U300, and the ZTE TU25 (the XOHM USB device). With this latest firmware version, you can simply plug in any one of those WiMAX USB modems and share the connection with multiple computers either via WiFi (MBR1000 and CTR500 only) or ethernet cable.

The firmware update is available for FREE on 3Gstore (our sister site) via this link:

http://3gstore.com/151

If you already own a Cradlepoint MBR1000/CTR500/CBA250/MBR800, you can simply install the new firmware and you'll be able to share your WiMAX connection!

Beginning today, all orders for these routers from 3Gstore will include a copy of this firmware on CD.

Who Needs a Landline? Use Clear for VOIP!

Landline phone providers have already taken a big hit over the past couple years as more and more customers are deciding to rely solely on their cell phones, and now Clearwire is offering one more way to ditch the local phone company: the ClearVoice adapter.

Clearwire's latest addition to their product lineup is the Linksys 2102 ClearVoice adapter, which allows you to utilize your Clear Home Modem and any regular landline telephone for VOIP phone service. The adapter features two ports for phones (or even a fax machine) and 2 ethernet ports - one to connect to the Home Modem and a spare one that you can use for networking.

Best of all, it's affordable. The ClearVoice Adapter is only $15 and the service is just $25 (in addition to any of the Clear home plans) for unlimited calling!

Cradlepoint MBR1100 3G/4G Router: Coming Soon

New MBR1100 Mobile Broadband Router Supports 3G, 4G Networks and VPN

WiMAX may only be available in two US cities - STILL - but thanks to Cradlepoint you'll soon be able to do more with it if you've got it! Cradlepoint has announced that they will be launching the MBR1100 router during the first quarter of 2009, and it will not only support a huge variety of 3G devices (see 3G router compatibility chart for full list) but also Clearwire's 4G w100 and the Sprint 3G/3G U300.

The MBR1100 will be very similar to the 3G MBR1000 and will retail for an estimated $349.99. Stay tuned for a full review on 4Ginfo.com!

Discuss the MBR1100 on the 4G Forums

It's been a while since we've updated this blog, but not for lack of interesting news! The tech industry has been buzzing like crazy about the future of 4G, particularly the war between WiMAX and LTE. WiMAX had the early lead, but Verizon has made some bold goals about their LTE plans, promising to debut the service in two markets by the end of the year, and WiMAX is still only (officially) available in Portland and Baltimore.

With Verizon's LTE plans in place, it is imperative that Clearwire and Sprint expand their coverage in order to stay competitive. Before Clearwire can even think about expanding, though, they still need to take care of the issue of integrating XOHM and Clear! Right now, even though Clearwire has taken over, XOHM is still operating as a separate entity and there is no way to "roam" between the two networks - if you're a XOHM customer and travel to Portland, your modems won't work on the Clear network, and vice versa.

According to XOHM employees, they have not even been told whether Clearwire will be closing down the XOHM offices in Arizona or if they will simply become Clearwire employees. Clearwire's offices are in Oregon, so unfortunately it seems likely that they may decide to close that office altogether.

We have been repeatedly assured that XOHM customers will be taken care of and will have no problems continuing to use their service and continuing their existing plans. However, there is no word on how Clear plans to make XOHM user's modems compatible with the network. It could be a firmware upgrade or possibly a swap (XOHM customers would have to return their modems in exchange for a Clear model), but no announcement has been made.

We are standing by like the rest of you, wondering not just how long it will take Clearwire to get service to more cities, but how they will take care of us XOHM-ers!

We all know that Clear will be taking over XOHM in Baltimore at some point, but neither Clearwire nor XOHM has fully explained how that will effect XOHM users. XOHM's website has some FAQ's on the issue and indicates a couple of interesting points - your XOHM modem won't work in Portland, for instance - but there aren't any "clear" (hardy har har) answers about what will really happen when Clear takes over.

After several chats with XOHM and Clear, I was able to find out the following:

• Right now, XOHM modems will NOT work on the Clear network, and vice versa. If you take your ZTE tu25 USB Modem to Portland, you will NOT be able to get Clear.
• When Clear takes over in Baltimore, XOHM modems will NOT automatically work! According to a Clear rep, they are hoping to provide firmware updates for the available XOHM modems at that time - you would have to install a new firmware version before being able to access Clear.
• If they are UNABLE to create new firmware that would allow XOHM users to use their existing modems when Clear takes over, they will provide an upgrade to a Clear modem free of charge.
• XOHM users who have signed up for the "$50/month for Life" plan will be allowed to keep that plan when Clear takes over, even though Clear does not offer that same plan.
• NO ONE seems to know just when this takeover will occur. One estimate placed it at about four months, but there is NO indication that that is an accurate guess.

By all accounts, Clearwire is doing their best to keep things simple for XOHM users and the CEO has repeatedly stated that in the future XOHM and Clear users will be able to roam on each other's networks without a problem. However, it doesn't sound like this can be accomplished without - at the minimum - a firmware upgrade. And just WHEN this will start to effect Baltimore XOHM-er's is still the BIG question.

Discuss the future of XOHM - and its relationship with Clear! - on the 4G Forums

Since XOHM made its debut back in September, many early-adopting techies have experienced WiMAX in several cities. Baltimore was XOHM's sole officially covered WiMAX area, although users have been able to semi-stealthily access the network in other areas, including Chicago and Dallas, and now Portland has become the first network to be "Clear".

Clearwire launched their WiMAX network under the brand "Clear" this week in Portland. The network had been active in the area for a month or so, but this week Clearwire finally made things official and began a marketing campaign to get the word out about Clear and what it can do. Since the network has actually been live for several weeks, this official launch didn't bring any changes in and of itself, but it sets the stage for future launches.

Currently, Clearwire is officially operating WiMAX networks in just 2 cities: Portland and the XOHM-covered Baltimore (the name "XOHM" will be phased out and replaced with "Clear" within the next few months), but they also have "pre-WiMAX" networks operating in about 40 markets in North America. These lucky cities will likely be some of the first to get the upgrade to Clear since some of the infrastructure is already in place. Which other cities are on the list to get equipped with Clear is not, well, clear - no places in particular have been named by the company just yet.

While there aren't any details on Clearwire's roll-out plans, their chief strategy officer Scott Richardson made some interesting announcements in the wake of the launch. For one, he said that the plans and pricing for Clear service - which are pretty flexible and affordable as is - will be adjusted after hearing feedback from users in Portland and Baltimore (click here to read more about Clearwire's pricing and plans). Richardson also spoke about a product they'll soon be offering called the "Clear Voice Adapter", which will hook your landline (who still has one?) to the Clear home modem and allow users to make unlimited calls within the US via VOIP for just $25/month.

Finally, the fact that Clearwire is moving forward with marketing and promoting Clear also means that Sprint 4G should be following suit. Remember, Sprint - who owns 49% of Clearwire - will be offering WiMAX service along with EVDO at some point in the near future with the Franklin u300 dual-mode modem.

It takes a long time (and a lot of money) to deploy a brand new network like this, so patience is obviously going to be important for those of us not living in Portland or Baltimore. However, it looks like Clearwire is either unaffected by or just ignoring the economic troubles plaguing most of us and seem to be moving quickly!

Discuss the Clear launch on 4G Forums

The newly formed Clearwire is only a week old, but they are wasting no time picking up where Sprint left off and moving forward with their new brand. As you probably know by now, the closure of the merger between Clearwire and Sprint's WiMAX division gives Clearwire all of Sprint's WiMAX assets as well as access to several billion dollars of investment money from the likes of Google, Intel, and of course Sprint.

Clearwire's WiMAX service is called "Clear", and XOHM is being re-branded to match. As far as we can tell, there won't be any interruption in service for users already signed up with XOHM - it's simply a matter of re-branding. The new Clear WiMAX network debuted in Portland last week, and while the new clear.com website does NOT bother giving us any sort of coverage map to look at, you can type in an address and see if service is available. You can't take a look at the plans or see how much the modems cost unless you confirm your coverage first, so I used the Portland Fire Department's address and was able to peruse their offerings. Here's what I found:

Essentially, Clear's service structure is set up very similarly to XOHM's. You have the option of "home" service with a Motorola home modem - it plugs into the wall and then you can connect either via ethernet or hook it up to a regular WiFi router - or "mobile" service with a Motorola w100 USB dongle. Like XOHM, Clear has no-contract options, but you also have the option of signing a 2-year Clear contract and getting some discounts, including waivers of the $35 activation fee. The cost of the devices themselves is the same whether you sign the contract or not, though - $49.99 for the USB dongle and $175 for the home modem - so I would imagine that most people will opt to steer clear of contracts (pun 100% intended).

The other interesting thing that Clear has done with their plans is give you options for speed with the home modem and usage with the USB device. With the home modem, you are guaranteed unlimited bandwidth (let's see how long that lasts), but you can choose the speed you pay for: $20/month for 768 Kbps/128 Kbps, $30 for 3.0 Mbps/384 Kbps, or $40 for 6.0 Mbps/512 Kbps. With the USB modem, you are limited to 4.0 Mbps/384 Kbps, but you can choose from three bandwidth plans: 200mb for $30, 2GB for $40, or unlimited (again - enjoy it while it lasts!) for just $50/month.

While these new plans offer a lot of flexibility and can help occasional users save money by giving them a cheap, low-usage option, it all seems a bit much. Even the most expensive plans offered by Clear are still very competitive - and cheaper than EVDO - so I doubt many customers will choose to forgo the potentially awesome speeds Clear can offer in favor of saving $10 a month.

Discuss the CLEAR plans and products on the 4G Forums

Now that the formation of the new Clearwire company has been approved by the Feds as well as their shareholders, it is expected that the deal will be closing on December 1st. What does that mean for us WiMAX-hungry consumers, though?

The closure of the deal will give Clearwire access to a huge chunk of change (several billions of dollars courtesy of Intel and more) and they are going to put it right to use. Portland, Oregon is reported to be the first market deployed, and that will be happening soon - first quarter 2009 - followed by Atlanta, Las Vegas, and Grand Rapids. The lack of big city names like LA and New York is a bit disappointing, but they are hiring for many positions around the country, including Los Angeles and Texas, indicating that those areas will likely be Clearwire markets at some point.

For now, it's back to waiting for XOHM to switch their test markets (Chicago, Philly, et al) to official XOHM networks!

Clearwire and Sprint have had to jump through a lot of hurdles since announcing their plans to join their WiMAX forces back in May of 2008. They faced opposition from AT&T, who unsuccessfully appealed to the FCC earlier this fall to try to stop the merger, as well as from iPCS, then had to wait for approval from the FCC (which they got earlier this month), and then were waiting on a vote from Clearwire stockholders to see that they had their stamp of approval.

It was finally given to the shareholders to vote upon on Thursday, and Clearwire's board of directors unanimously recommended to their shareholders that they vote in favor of the merger - and they did!

The transaction was approved by the shareholders yesterday and Clearwire (remember, the merged Sprint/Clearwire company is going under the name "Clearwire") now has the seal of approval from the law and the people. This is a big step and I'd expect to see their development and deployment schedule really ramp up now.

As Clearwire CEO Benjamin G. Wolff put it,

"Today, our shareholders have taken a transformative step toward enabling an entirely new mobile Internet experience for consumers and businesses across the country. With an unmatched spectrum portfolio, a next generation all IP network, an ever-expanding ecosystem of mobile 4G devices, and the backing of some of the most innovative communications, entertainment and technology companies in the world, Clearwire is ready to redefine mobile Internet services in the U.S."

Join the 4G Forums discussion about the new Clearwire

The Clearwire/Sprint merger may have been approved by the FCC earlier this month, but that doesn't mean the new WiMAX company is now 100% free to forge ahead with all of their plans. At least two companies have expressed a distaste for the merger - first AT&T, who tried to block the merger earlier this year, and also Illinois-based Sprint partner iPCS, who has a history of blocking Sprint from providing service from merged companies in their territories. Citing exclusivity clauses in their contract with Sprint, iPCS has gone to the courts in hopes of barring Sprint from offering any service from the new Clearwire network in their territories, which include areas of Illinois, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Iowa, Ohio and Tennessee (check out the map above for more detail on where iPCS reigns).

Fortunately for Sprint/Clearwire, on Monday an Illinois circuit court told iPCS that they must immediately withdraw their request for a restraining order, meaning Sprint/Clearwire can move forward with their WiMAX development plans. This is great news for the new company, especially considering the precedent that was set when the Illinois court sided with iPCS when they complained about the Nextel merger. The court did provide an allowance for iPCS to re-file in the future, but for the time being Clearwire will be allowed to continue their development unfettered.

It has been reported that Clearwire plans on rolling out services in iPCS territories in July of 2009, and they have agreed to notify iPCS of their plans 60 days before launch. While it was reported that July 2009 would be the soonest WiMAX would be deployed in those regions, it was not made clear where exactly the service will become available first or which parts of the region will be covered.

Discuss iPCS vs Clearwire on the 4G Forums

Earlier in the year AT&T tried to put the legal kibosh on Sprint and Clearwire, hoping to prevent them from completing the big merger that would (will) surely make them a WiMAX superpower. The merger is still going through, but AT&T isn't the only company less than thrilled about it.

Illinois' iPCS is a service provider that serves around 640,000 subscribers in portions of Illinois, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Iowa, Ohio and Tennessee with Sprint service, and they have been battling it out with Sprint ever since their acquisition of Nextel back in 2005. With the Nextel issue, iPCS argued that the merger breached the exclusivity portions of their contract with Sprint, and they were successful - court rulings forced Sprint to ditch their Nextel operations in the areas iPCS covers. Now that Clearwire is joining the mix to create a widespread WiMAX network, iPCS is back in the courts again, trying to do the same thing with this merger that they did with the Nextel issue. Timothy M. Yager, president and CEO of iPCS explained their point of view in a news release:

“Over the past few years the exclusivity provisions of our affiliation agreements have been continually tested by Sprint, and we believe that it is appropriate and necessary to continue to defend our rights under the agreements. We firmly believe that the Illinois courts, including the Illinois Appellate Court, that have previously enforced our exclusivity protection will also find that this latest attempt by Sprint to compete with us in our territory is another violation of our agreements.”

Essentially iPCS is arguing that their contract with Sprint promises that iPCS has the exclusive rights to use Sprint's network, and continued mergers with other providers go against this and wreak havoc with their place in the market.

Obviously, Sprint is fighting back. The Clearwire merger is crucial to their goal of creating the first major WiMAX network in the country, and being blocked in 80 markets - however small or large they may be - puts a crimp in their plans. They're heading to the Illinois Circuit Courts to contest iPCS's claims and hope to get things cleared up ASAP as they move forward with their WiMAX plans.

The question now is what will/would happen if iPCS is successful again in their attempts to keep their market exclusively Sprint.

Verizon may have a history of rebuffing Google, particularly its Android platform, but such is not the case for Clearwire. In a chat with Unstrung.com, CEO Ben Wolf confirmed that their WiMAX XOHM devices will indeed make use of Android.

Between their earlier timeline and now the confirmation that Sprint/Clearwire XOHM users will get to use Android devices, Verizon is looking further and further behind in the 4G market. They did show some interesting progress this week with talk of their new "open development" policy, but how far will that carry them?

Discuss Clearwire and Android on 4G Forums