Verizon is about to roll out its LTE network in a big way. COO and Preside Lowell McAdam has announced that the service will roll-out to 38 markets as soon as they hit the switch. Perhaps more exciting is the news that six 4G smartphones and tablets (presumably a total of six devices, not six of each) will land in the first half of next year.
Verizon is leveraging its newly acquired 700 MHz spectrum for the network which means that the signal will have little trouble penetrating buildings or other man made obstacles. For more information on which exact cities will be covered by the new LTE network, check out Verizon’s page here.
Verizon is expecting ambitious figures in the real world usage of its LTE network. From the Verizon press release they state:
“Verizon Wireless expects 4G LTE average data rates to be 5-12 megabits per second (Mbps) on the downlink and 2-5 Mbps on the uplink in real-world, loaded network environments. These speeds are significantly faster than Verizon Wireless and other wireless providers" current or promised 3G network speeds”
These numbers, if they hold true, easily compete with cable and DSL and may soon offer users another choice in home broadband. While nothing was mentioned if tiered data buckets were to be used, it’s still a major question that needs to be answered before you go and dump your dedicated home broadband connection.