Late leak has Verizon 4G live Dec. 5 with two modems
updated 09:05 pm EST, Tue November 30, 2010
Verizon LTE said launching December 5
A late leak this evening has provided some details of what will show at Verizon's 4G press conference. The LTE network is now due to go live on December 5 and will start out with the twoUSB modems leaked earlier. LG's VL600 will be a typical thumb-sized drive, while the Pantech UML290 just spotted in the Engadget leak (shown below) has a unique dual-swivel design to accommodate earlier MacBook Airs and others with tight fits.
The first phones still aren't expected to arrive until 2011 and will at first focus on the HTC Incredible HD.
Prices and the first cities to go live still aren't known, but Verizon will by necessity have its own SIM cards. More details are expected at the event, which starts at noon Eastern on Wednesday. Verizon's cards aren't likely to provide retroactive support to unlocked iPhones, since its plans are only meant for LTE data and won't have voice switched on.
Pantech UML290
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Jan 2010
LTE isn't 4G
LTE is 3.9G. It's faster than 3G but still a proprietary protocol. The real 4G will be all-IP, all packet-switched. When the spec is finally chosen, that is. Looks like LTE Advanced will be the 4G spec, and it should arrive in, oh, 2012 or 2013.
I wonder what Verizon will do when everyone else is rolling out the real 4G. Maybe VZ will follow suit and call it "Extra Super 4G." Or maybe they'll stick with their outdated interim LTE technology for a few more years, simply because they know their customers are locked in and can't switch. I think the latter is more likely.