Sprint today announced that it has upgraded the Sprint Power Vision Network, to the faster EV-DO Revision A technology. San Diego is the first of 21 markets to get it.
Sprint will roll out EV-DO Revision A this year with coverage expected to reach more than 40 million people next year. Sprint Power Vision users in these markets should experience significantly faster average upload speeds of 300-400 kbps (compared with 50-70 kbps of current EV-DO networks). Average download speeds should also increase to 450-800 kbps from 400-700 kbps.
By 3Q 2007, Sprint expects to have its Power Vision networkto be completely upgraded to the faster EV-DO Revision A.
Sprint says the upgrade to EV-DO Revision A will enable applications such as all IP video telephony, high-performance push-to-talk (walkie-talkie service), multi-user video conferencing, real-time gaming and video streaming of both content and live web cams simultaneously as they become available.
Overall, Sprint plans to reach more than 200 million people in the U.S. with mobile broadband data services (including both EV-DO Revisions 0 and A) in 220 major metropolitan areas across the country with its Power Vision network by the end of 2006.
In early November, Sprint will make its first mobile broadband USB modem available – the Novatel Wireless Ovation U720. This device plugs into the USB port of a laptop and sells for a suggested retail price of $249.99 or as low as $49.99 with a two-year subscriber agreement and mail-in-rebate.
It joins three previously announced EV-DO Revision A-compatible connection cards: the Pantech PX-500, Sierra Wireless Aircard®595 and the Novatel Wireless S720. Designed for operation with compatible laptops with Type II PCMCIA slots and the Linksys Wireless G-Router for Mobile Broadband ($249). All of these devices will also work on the Sprint Power Vision Network where the EV-DO Revision A upgrade is not yet available.
Service plans for all cards currently range from $39.99 per month for 40 MB to $79.99 per month for unlimited data usage. Customers signing a two-year Sprint subscriber agreement may also be eligible to receive unlimited data usage for $59.99 per month (no separate voice plan required).
According to market researchers there are a total of 219.4 million U.S. wireless subscribers. Penetration of cellular subscribers in the U.S. is approximately 74% and likely to exceed 78% by the end of the year.
Cingular is the largest cellular company in the United States, with 57.3 million customers, Verizon is 2nd with 54.8 million subs, Sprint/Nextel is 3rd with 51.7 million subs and T-Mobile USA is 4th largest in the United States with 23.3 million subs.
-
Cingular is implementing the first widely available HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access) service in the world. Their BroadbandConnect provides average downlink data speeds between 400-700Kbps down with uplink speeds to 384Kbps. HSDPA coverage is under 20 major markets.
Initial plans were to expand to 100 markets by end of 2006 but lately they’ve been saying ‘most major markets’ for 2006. UMTS/HSDPA is a costly upgrade for cellsites, requiring a 5MHz channel rather than the 1.25 MHz data channels used by GSM and EV-DO. - Verizon is rolling out Revision A this year for their data-oriented BroadbandAccess and V CAST (for multimedia). Both services are based on the company’s Evolution-Data Optimized (EV-DO) network technology. Verizon claims 180+ markets for EV-DO but it’s really only 85+ contiguous distinct markets. Verizon has a mix of 800/1900mhz towers and tends to only put EVDO on 1900. Here’s their EVDO Coverage Map. Verizon is also using Lucent gear.
- T-Mobile is holding off 3G UMTS, waiting for it’s AWS frequencies. Meanwhile they’ve got T-Mobile hotspots at Starbucks for high speed connections.
EVDOinfo.com, EVDOforums and 3G News have more.
Related DailyWireless stories include; Mobile WiMAX: The Attack Plan, Verizon Tests Rev A, Qualcomm Buys Flarion, T-Mobile’s HSDPA Move, CDMA vs OFDM, Sprint Rolls Out EV-DO, 3G: HSDPA or Not?, HSDPA Tests, Sprint Commits to EV-DO and Cellular At The Races.
