T-Mobile USA 3G Coverage Broken Down By City
T-Mobile USA have announced further expansion of their 3G network, with less than a week until their flagship internet cellphone, the Android-powered G1, is released on October 22nd. The numbers certainly seem to have shot up since the last count, but a lot of that is down to a different way of expressing coverage areas. Having received many calls asking for city-by-city breakdowns of 3G availability, the carrier told SlashGear, they're now shifting to referring to coverage by cities.
That, obviously, means far bigger numbers than the old system, which referred to areas as "markets". The figures now stand at 92 major cities with 3G coverage (across 21 markets) today, with that rising to 95 by next Wednesday's T-Mobile G1 launch. By the end of November, the carrier is claiming it will have more than 120 major cities covered with high-speed HSDPA access.
T-Mobile are not making any accurate public predictions beyond November, but with coverage still lagging behind EV-DO provisions from Verizon and Sprint they'll need to continue pushing the rollout through 2009. Still, it's good to know that fewer G1 owners will be left twiddling their thumbs at EDGE speeds. Make sure to check out the Android Community review of the T-Mobile G1 powered by Google Android.
Press Release:
T-Mobile USA Further Expands Commercial 3G Network Availability in 2008Washington, D.C., and Surrounding Areas to Launch in November; More than 120 Major Cities with T-Mobile 3G Coverage by End of Year
BELLEVUE, Wash. — Oct. 17, 2008 — T-Mobile USA, Inc. continues to aggressively expand its third-generation (3G) wireless broadband service, announcing today that the company will launch 3G service in and around the Washington, D.C., area in late November. At that time, the number of locations with T-Mobile's 3G coverage will amount to more than 120 major cities across the top population centers nationwide.
This week, T-Mobile 3G coverage launched in the Sacramento, Calif., area bringing the number of major cities currently served with 3G coverage to 92. Next week, communities in and around Memphis, Tenn., and Tampa, Fla., will be the latest to reap the benefits of wireless broadband service from T-Mobile.
"We're excited about the broad scale and reach of our 3G footprint in major cities across the nation, already accessible by tens of millions of consumers. And today, where the majority of our customers use data services, our 3G network is there for them," said Neville Ray, senior vice president of Engineering and Operations, T-Mobile USA. "Our 3G footprint will continue to expand, and we look forward to continuing to deliver the rich experiences a 3G network can bring to T-Mobile customers."
T-Mobile's Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS)/High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) data network supports multiple 3G-capable phones available from T-Mobile, including the HSDPA-enabled T-Mobile G1 with Google, coming to select T-Mobile retail stores and available online on Oct. 22. The network can deliver download speeds of up to 1 Mbps; the faster speeds allow T-Mobile customers with 3G-capable handsets to take full advantage of new and emerging applications, such as the wide array of unique services accessible on the T-Mobile G1.
To view T-Mobile's current 3G coverage including a complete list of major cities where 3G coverage is available, please go to the company's Personal Coverage Check online at http://www.t-mobile.com/coverage.