Sprint 4G Now Available in New York and California
Sprint today launched the faster 4G service in New York, California, Oregon and Washington, bringing the total to 43 metropolitan areas in 16 states.
Three of the country's largest markets — New York City, Los Angeles and Miami — can expect to have 4G service by the end of this year, the company said today.
Sprint is the only wireless provider to offer 4G service and can only be accessed through Sprint’s 4G-capable phone, the HTC EVO. The speedier network means faster downloads, uninterrupted streaming video, and faster Web browsing.
Demand for the HTC EVO is exceeding supply for the moment. Sprint currently does not list a ship date for the sold out phone. A second 4G-capable phone, the Samsung Epic 4G , is scheduled to arrive at Sprint this fall.
4G is designed for the increasingly video-rich mobile experience, which can consume 200 megabytes of data in under an hour. Fortunately, Sprint continues to offer its Everything Data plans, which include unlimited Web, texting and calling for a flat monthly rate.
While Sprint has a headstart on its competition, Verizon and AT&T have announced their plans for 4G service. Verizon is currently testing 4G in Boston and Seattle, and plans to launch the new service in 25 to 30 U.S. markets before the end of the year. Verizon will have a 4G phone within six months of the launch, limiting its faster service to 4G laptops in the interim.
T-Mobile has what it calls 4G-like service in 25 U.S. metropolitan areas including Los Angeles, New Orleans and Atlanta. It plans to build 4G LTE (long term evolution, the 4G technology used by Verizon and AT&T; Sprint uses WiMax for 4G) networks in the future, but said its current HSPA+ networks offer equivalent speeds to both alternative technologies.
AT&T customers won’t see a 4G network until 2011.
Markets that currently have Sprint 4G coverage include:
California – Merced, Visalia
Georgia – Atlanta, Milledgeville
Hawaii – Honolulu, Maui
Idaho – Boise
Illinois – Chicago
Maryland – Baltimore
Missouri – Kansas City, St. Louis
New York – Rochester, Syracuse
Nevada – Las Vegas
North Carolina – Charlotte, Greensboro (along with High Point and Winston-Salem), Raleigh (along with Cary, Chapel Hill and Durham)
Oregon – Eugene, Portland, Salem
Pennsylvania – Harrisburg, Lancaster, Philadelphia, Reading and York
Texas – Abilene, Amarillo, Austin, Corpus Christi, Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston, Killeen/Temple, Lubbock, Midland/Odessa, San Antonio, Waco, Wichita Falls
Utah – Salt Lake City
Virginia – Richmond
Washington – Bellingham, Seattle, Tri-Cities, Yakima
