T-Mobile takes 3G to SF, more pre-Android
updated 08:45 am EDT, Thu September 18, 2008
T-Mobile 3G Expands
T-Mobile today revealed that it will significantly expand its 3G network in the next few weeks to include several key areas. Although just 13 major cities are covered today, the cellular carrier plans to grow that number to 21 by mid-October and will include key technology hubs such as San Francisco and Seattle as well as Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, Orlando, Philadelphia and Sacramento.
These new areas like earlier examples should support at least basic UMTS-based 3G for most of the company's current 3G phone lineup as well as HSDPA for the TM506 and future handsets that support the faster Internet speeds.
The rollout news arrives less than a week before T-Mobile plans to announce the T-Mobile G1, the first-ever phone based on Google's Android mobile operating system. The provider itself has confirmed through a logo on its invitation to its press event that the G1 will support 3G and is believed to be the first HSDPA-supporting smartphone on the company's network, taking advantage of the extra speed for web access and other Internet-heavy apps.
T-Mobile plans to cover 27 areas by the end of the year but is currently lagging behind AT&T, which started its 3G rollout years earlier and currently has over 300 areas supporting the faster data standard.
