Tag Archives: MobileBroadband

NTT DoCoMo’s vision of ‘5G’ wireless: 100x faster than LTE, but not until 2020

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NTT DoCoMo's vision of '5G' wireless 100x faster than LTE, but unlikely prior to 2020

We knew good and well that Japanese carrier NTT DoCoMo would be divulging details about its 5G wireless plans at CEATEC, but the claims that we've stumbled upon here in Chiba are nothing short of bananas. Granted, the operator is making clear that its vision isn't intended to reach implementation until 2020, and it confesses that a 5G standard has yet to be ratified. That said, it's dreaming of a world where its network offers "1000 times the capacity and 100 times the speed as the current network."

Representatives for the company told us that the challenge is going to be dealing with range limitations in higher frequency spectrum, but it plans to employ "high-frequency bandwidth by transmitting with a large number of antenna elements." The goal for looking so far forward? It's already seeing an insane appetite for video on networks that can barely maintain poise under the load, and the notion of transferring 4K content to the masses is going to require a substantial upgrade. CEATEC's known as a place that allows companies to dream big and aim for the fences, but we'll be honest -- we'd really, really prefer that 2020 arrived sooner rather than later.

Mat Smith contributed to this report. %Gallery-slideshow99596%

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NTT DoCoMo to demonstrate its version of 5G at CEATEC in October

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NTT DoCoMo to demonstrate its version of 5G at CEATEC in October

NTT DoCoMo's LTE-Advanced network may still be in its infancy, but the company's already preparing for when 150 Mbps is considered slow. Many are looking towards the next-generation of mobile broadband, and DoCoMo has said its ready to reveal its very own 5G "concept" at the CEATEC conference in Japan next month. We don't know if the company is referring to the monstrous 10 Gbps link that has competitor KDDI scratching its head, but "incredible speed, high capacity and low latency" are promised features. In addition, DoCoMo will preview its "winter 2013 / spring 2014" handset line-up and show off work it's been doing in the augment-reality and wearable spaces. We'll be around to browse the booth, of course, and dream of a time when streaming native 4K content over 5G to 21-inch smartphones will be standard.

[Thanks, Erwan]

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Source: NTT DoCoMo

Google invites iOS users to experience data compression with Chrome

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Google invites iOS users to experience data compression with Chrome

Like it or not, thinking about every megabyte is essential for smartphone owners hoping to keep their monthly usage from topping whatever tier they've purchased. The nasty, unbecoming world of data caps isn't changing in the near-term, and Google knows it. Following in the footsteps of Opera, the outfit's Chrome browser for iOS is evidently equipped with a data compression feature that's engineered to save precious bytes when browsing via mobile. This technology has existed for some time, but it's just now being rolled out en masse to those with an iPhone. We're told that it "compresses and minimizes HTML, JavaScript and CSS resources, removing unnecessary whitespace, comments and other metadata not essential to rendering the pages," which can reduce data usage by up to 50 percent on certain sites. So, Apple -- thinking about tossing something similar under the hood of Mobile Safari?

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Source: TechCrunch

NetZero strikes deals to use Sprint LTE and Verizon 3G

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NetZero strikes deals to use Sprint LTE and Verizon 3G

We like the idea of NetZero's budget-friendly mobile broadband -- just not its use of Clearwire's small, aging WiMAX network. The provider should soon take care of that problem through new MVNO agreements with Sprint and Verizon. The five-year Sprint pact gives NetZero both LTE and EV-DO; the Verizon deal serves more as a safety net, supplying EV-DO alone for three years. Both agreements only take effect in the second quarter of 2014, but they should finally give the NetZero broad coverage and higher peak speeds that it needs to compete with more expensive rivals.

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Via: FierceBroadband Wireless

Source: United Online, Seeking Alpha

T-Mobile’s 4G Connect offers free 200MB of monthly data on PCs and tablets (hands-on)

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TMobile's 4G Connect offers free 200MB of monthly data on PCs and tablets handson

T-Mobile knows that the easiest way to get new customers is to give away your service for free, and it's handing access out like so much candy with its new 4G Connect strategy. Similar to what we've seen for Chromebooks, the deal supplies 200MB of free data every month for up to two years, right out of the box. Those who need more than casual email checks on the road just need to pay T-Mobile's prepaid rates to keep the broadband going. The Dell Inspiron 14z and HP Pavilion dm1 are the only devices available for now that qualify for the 4G Connect plan, but more are lined up for 2013, including (but not exclusively) devices with Qualcomm's Gobi chipsets in PCs or its Snapdragon chips in Windows RT tablets. T-Mobile tells us that we won't have to hunt down specific Magenta models, either -- once a PC line includes 4G Connect, every American variant should carry the needed modem as a matter of course.

We had the opportunity to try a Pavilion dm1 with 4G Connect, and it's clear that T-Mobile is largely letting the PC builder take priority. The hardware is very much vanilla on the outside. Most of what you'll notice, apart from reasonably fast HSPA+ data when you're away from WiFi, is a custom T-Mobile app. Both a Live Tile and the full app will show usage; diving in shows everything in a simple not-Metro layout with extra options for SMS messaging and topping up when the bandwidth runs low. Apart from having to register the PC in the first place, the service is as simple as we'd care to see. Now, where's our LTE connection?

Continue reading T-Mobile's 4G Connect offers free 200MB of monthly data on PCs and tablets (hands-on)

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Source: T-Mobile

International Telecommunication Union: worldwide mobile subscriptions hit six billion in 2011

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International Telecommunication Union: worldwide mobile subscriptions hit six billion in 2011

Last year, the UN's International Telecommunication Union (ITU) told us there were five billion mobile subscriptions worldwide at the close of 2010, and now it's reporting that at the end of 2011, that figure hit a staggering six billion. China and India account for one billion a piece, and it brings us ever closer to having the equivalent of one subscription for every person on the planet. (According to the CTIA, there are already more cellular plans in the US -- around 322 million -- than there are inhabitants.) In a stat-heavy release from the ITU, it also ranked the most advanced telecoms countries, with South Korea placing first, Japan eighth and countries in Europe filling the remaining spots.

Interestingly, the number of global mobile broadband subscriptions now outnumbers fixed ones by two to one, and mobile internet services showed the biggest growth rates in 2011: 40% worldwide and 78% in developing markets. The ITU attributes the latter figure to the relatively high price of fixed access in these countries, and the increasing availability of mobile alternatives. The CTIA also commented on mobile broadband use, reporting that from July 2011 to June this year, Americans consumed 104 percent more data -- no doubt due, in part, to people taking advantage of expanding 4G coverage. As usual, we've given you the cheat sheet, so if you'd like the full reports and have got a thing for statistics, there's plenty more in the source links below.

[Image credit: Chris Jordan]

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International Telecommunication Union: worldwide mobile subscriptions hit six billion in 2011 originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 12 Oct 2012 12:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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UK government and industry heavyweights set up 5G Innovation Centre, want to go one better

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UK government and industry heavyweights set up 5G Innovation Centre, want to go one better

The UK is almost ready to flip the switch on its first LTE network, but it's determined to be at the forefront of the next-generation, setting up a "5G Innovation Centre" at the University of Surrey. The government announced it's putting up £11.6 million (around $18.6 million) in funding, but another £24 million (around $38.5 million) will be coming from an industry group comprising the likes of Huawei, Samsung, Telefonica, Rohde & Schwarz, Fujitsu and others. The money will allow research to go beyond concept and theory, with the aim that all partners work together to develop and standardize 5G technology, which the university has been looking into for a number of years already. They will focus on energy and spectrum efficiency as well as speed, and although it's early days, 10Gbps has been banded around as a per-tower target, translating to roughly 200Mbps for each connection. Unfortunately, we've also got a number to kill your geek buzz -- it's upwards of a decade away. Still, at least you've got a long time to think about which case you'll be picking up for your 5G-ready Galaxy S XV.

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UK government and industry heavyweights set up 5G Innovation Centre, want to go one better originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Oct 2012 18:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tep Wireless review: another great option for international mobile hotspot rentals

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Tep Wireless review anther great option for international mobile hotspot rentals

Traveling is great -- nay, amazing. And travel that requires a passport can be even more fulfilling for those willing to open their minds to new cultures (and, perhaps, deal with entirely too much security screening). But here's the thing -- travel is a lot better, generally speaking, with an internet connection within arm's reach. Things are never more likely to go awry than when you leave your comfort zone (or, you know, home nation), and we here at Engadget have been investigating the best methods for maintaining a connection whilst abroad for the better part of our lives. To date, you've got a smattering of options: rent a MiFi from XCom Global, pick up a rental SIM from iPhoneTrip, pray that you can find a shop that rents data SIMs upon your arrival or pony up for whatever absurd roaming fees that your home operator deems fit.

All of the above options have their pros and cons, but the good news here is that your choices are expanding. As the market for ubiquitous connections continues to grow, another player has recently entered the market. Tep Wireless began as a hotspot rental service that mainly looked after those traversing the United Kingdom, but recently, it expanded its coverage umbrella to include some 38 countries across Europe and 50 nations total. This here editor recently had the opportunity to cross through four of those on a single journey, with a Tep hotspot in hand the entire way. Care to see how things turned out? Let's reconvene after the break.

Gallery: Tep Wireless review gallery

Continue reading Tep Wireless review: another great option for international mobile hotspot rentals

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Tep Wireless review: another great option for international mobile hotspot rentals originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 03 Oct 2012 15:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tep Wireless expands mobile hotspot rental plan to 50 countries, revamps pricing

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Tep Wireless expands mobile hotspot rental plan to 50 countries, revamps pricing

The international mobile hotspot rental market just got a lot more interesting. While Xcom Global's offerings are still broader, Tep Wireless is expanding in a major way. Previously reserved for European nations, the upstart is now serving a full 50 nations, adding Brazil, the United States, South Africa, Singapore, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Australia, Bahrain, Israel, Kenya, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Russia, Sri Lanka, Thailand and UAE to its repertoire. For those in need of a refresher, the company enables customers facing an international trip to order their hotspot and get it delivered prior to departure, with a prepaid envelope included to ship it back once they've returned.

The company's made clear that its hotspots will track data usage in real time right on the inbuilt display, and they're programmed to hop onto different networks as borders are crossed. (If you're curious, we confirmed that it all works as advertised in a recent jaunt across European borders.) The full pricing chart fo is hosted up after the break, with those needing unlimited buckets able to pay a $6.95-per day surcharge. (It should be noted that the preexisting EU-wide pricing options remain for those sticking to that region.) It'll probably look a touch pricey to light users and common tourists, but business travelers unwilling to take chances on connectivity when heading overseas will find the rates far more palatable than roaming fees from their home carrier.

Continue reading Tep Wireless expands mobile hotspot rental plan to 50 countries, revamps pricing

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Tep Wireless expands mobile hotspot rental plan to 50 countries, revamps pricing originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 02 Oct 2012 06:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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