In the last episode of #4GWARS I wondered aloud if AT&T would start referring to their HSPA+ upgrade as “4G” now that T-Mobile was doing it. We were under the impression that AT&T’s network could only do speeds of 14.4 Mbps based on comments from their CEO, but new information suggest otherwise.
To my surprise, AT&T is now claiming their HSPA+ network is also capable of the same 21 Mbps speeds that T-Mobile is offering. They even go one step further by boasting their current coverage area is greater that what T-Mobile has right now or will have by year’s end.
In an email to Phone Scoop AT&T said, “T-Mobile’s claims about 4G are based on the same HSPA+ technology we have deployed to 180 million people today, more than T-Mobile’s reported 140 million, and we’ll have it rolled out to 250 million people by the end of this month, substantially more than the 200 million T-Mobile says it will have by year-end.”
AT&T does not currently offer any “4G” phones, but they do sell a USB modem that takes advantage of HSPA+ speeds. If AT&T really wanted to, they could launch a device similar to the G2 or myTouch 4G and claim they also offer “4G speeds”.
Now it appears T-Mobile’s new marketing campaign that is promoting them as America’s largest 4G network could be in jeopardy.
What do you think AT&T will do? Should they also adopt the “4G” branding when they launch their next superphone? Or should they stick with America’s fastest 3G?
