Updated: 4G Mobile Broadband And LTE Explained
4G Mobile Broadband And LTE Explained
Today’s 3G/UMTS networks were only launched in 2003, but plans are already well underway for replacement 4G mobile broadband technologies.
Though we Brits might be waiting a little while yet – as you’ll read – things aren’t quite so sluggish stateside.
In the US, Sprint was investing in the 802.16e WiMAX standard – promoted by Intel stateside – while Verizon has been rolling out a rival Long Term Evolution (LTE) network.
However, it has now emerged that Sprint Is Also Planning a 4G LTE network by late 2013 – seemingly admitting that it made the wrong choice with WiMax.
LTE promises mobile internet connectivity speedier than your home broadband.
And it’s easy to get excited. 2011 has seen several companies unveil 4G mobile phones designed specifically for next-gen 4G networks.
These included the show-stealing Motorola Atrix, which boasts a dual-core Tegra processor and 4-inch (540 x 960 pixel) screen (also available in a 3G version). There was also the Samsung Infuse (with its incredible 4.5-inch Super AMOLED Plus display), HTC Thunderbolt and, more recently, the LG Optimus LTE.
In tablets, Samsung announced an LTE-friendly version of the Galaxy Tab at January’s CES, while the 10.1-inch HTC Jetstream is also not coming to the UK.
Previously known as the HTC Puccini, the Jetstream comes with Honeycomb on a WXGA touchscreen and also rocks a 1.6GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon dualcore processor, a 7300 mAh battery and a microSD card slot.
Nokia’s forthcoming Windows Phone handset – Codenamed Sea Ray – also looks likely to ship with LTE.
NO JETSTREAM: The HTC Jetstream Joins A Whole Line Of Devices That Won’t Be Coming To The UK
When Will The UK Get 4G?
The bad news is that we’re unlikely to get a sniff of a national 4G network in the UK any time soon.
Ofcom’s Sale Of Spectrum that will carry the fourth generation licenses has been delayed until the second quarter of 2012.
The auction was originally intended to take place in the first three months of next year, but Ofcom has been unable to publish the terms of the auction due to disagreements with a number of networks.
Even if the auction takes place in the first half of 2012, we won’t see networks rolling the faster speeds out until 2013 at the earliest, putting the UK years behind some areas of the US and Japan.
"We are still aiming for the first half of next year. However, we have always maintained it is an ambitious timescale," said an Ofcom spokesperson.
"This is a complex area, involving a large number of technical and competition issues that we need to consider and resolve before finalising proposals.
"For example, a very high proportion of households in the UK rely on Digital Terrestrial TV – Freeview – which needs to be relocated before 4G can be rolled out."
Indeed, analysts at Informa Telecoms & Media Have Suggested that: "it is not economically viable to upgrade current UK mobile broadband networks to address traffic demands and improve user experience until 2015."
But there have been trials. O2 has been testing LTE in Slough since 2009, where it achieved an impressive peak download speed of over 150Mbps.
Everything Everywhere and BT Wholesale has started the First Live Trial Of 4G LTE Broadband in the UK, with Cornwall being used as the testbed for the next generation network. The trial – using 10MHz of test 800MHz spectrum – will run until early 2012, with LTE still on course to begin arriving in 2013.
4G Tech In The UK And Europe
The UK and Europe are likely to opt for LTE mobile broadband over competing technologies such as WiMAX. This would provide download speeds in excess of 100Mbps and upload rates over and above 50Mbps.
If these numbers eventually hold up (pinches of salt at the ready…), future LTE mobile devices could enjoy 5-6 times the performance of 3G with HSPA. In a Nokia trial, LTE set a cellular data record of 173Mbps in 2008. That’s seriously fast.
This dramatic speed boost comes courtesy of OFDM (Orthoganal Frequency Division Multiplexing), the same transmission technology used by ADSL, Wi-Fi, DVB-T, DVB-H and DAB. OFDM not only reduces latency, but minimises interference and can cram more data into the same slice of radio bandwidth. It will make LTE/4G phones ideal for streaming video and online gaming.
Because LTE is data-focused, not voice focused like 3G, it also employs the same TCP/IP protocols that underpin modern networking and Internet protocols. Once services begin to be deployed, voice traffic will be shifted from GSM to Voice over IP (VoIP), enabling your calls to be integrated with multimedia and web services.
4G Mobile Broadband (UK)
Further speed increases are also possible with the addition of MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) technology. The idea of having multiple antennas on transmitters and receivers is already used to great effect in 802.11n Wi-Fi gear.
Nokia’s 173Mbps trial used MIMO in a 2×2 configuration (ie two antennas on both the transmitter and receiver). A 4×4 MIMO setup could potentially deliver wireless 4G broadband speeds of 326.4 Mbps.
Of course, you’re unlikely to see anything like the maximum LTE data rate in practice. Peak speeds of around 25Mbps have been reported on Verizon’s 700MHz US network, with average speeds around half that figure. But that’s still about 3-4 times faster than current 3G connections. And the technology will get faster over time.
HSPA+ Vs Long Term Evolution (LTE)
Can HSPA+ cut it? As the analysts at Informa Telecoms & Media point out, "UK HSPA networks will be able to handle current and future traffic demands in the medium-term. Informa does not expect traffic congestion to start appearing until 2013 and even then only in certain hotspot areas."
So the smart money is on LTE mobile networks being deployed alongside existing 3G services from 2014/2015, delivering significantly higher data speeds to anyone willing to pay a premium for them.
At the same time, 3G-based HSPA+ services will provide a turbo-charged alternative for everybody else. O2 has laid its cards on the table as far as LTE is concerned. Other UK networks are remaining tight-lipped. And wouldn’t Three have to change its name to ‘Four’?
NEW TAB: Samsung Launched An LTE-Friendly Version Of Its Galaxy Tab Device At This Year’s CES
Sadly, we might have to wait a couple of years for LTE mobile phones to appear in the UK. Our Motorola Atrix will be 3G, not 4G. As will our iPhone 5s. But being late to the 4G party will have its advantages.
Category Article Updated: 4G Mobile Broadband And LTE Explained
