Basic Guide to 3G Internet Networks

3G and 4G are two terms which are very widely used but there is not enough clarity on these terms. 3G technology like WiMAX are gaining a strong foothold today while 4G technology is still in the development stage and would still take a few years in order to be at par in the industry.

Although LTE would be able to provide great downstream speeds, even up to 5 times of that provided by WiMAX, it would be a few years till it would be ready for the general public.

Currently Sprint is the monly career which uses WiMAX and the other three carriers are focusing more on LTE. All of the major carriers today use 3G strategies and most of them are already working hard on 4G.

For example, AT&T is already moving ahead with its 3G deployment. With 3G wireless broadband services already provided in 80 new cities, their plan is to expand their services to a total of 350. Apple iPhone uses AT&T’s wireless services has also moved on to 3G and would hopefully get good results from it too.  

The new iPhones would include many 3G features which would also include third party applications and support and a faster network. However, Apple is not the only player in 3G since there are three other cellular carriers that have 3G networks currently. Verizon and Sprint-Nextel also have 3G networks available along with smartphone handsets with very high speed services.

T-Mobile, the fourth major cellular carrier also has plans to roll out their new 3G network in a short time. The most aggressive player currently in the market is Sprint-Nextel which has plans to build up a strong broadband wireless network throughout the nation.

Sprint has a goal to deliver its wireless services to 100 million subscribers and this plan can make WiMAX mainstream and available to the general public.

This move would also push the other carriers to speed up their plans and develop their own 3G networks. Broadband would be delivered to several new markets with nationwide plans like this one with the network covering more isolated and rural areas.

3G wireless allows more flexibility and even notebook manufacturers are introducing the capability of connecting to 3G networks in their notebooks. Also, several carriers offer their internet services with 3G networks.

This service would soon become necessary and in demand as more portable devices and smartphones would become available and widely used in the market for surfing the web.

However, some analysts suggest that the operators would have to pay attention to the performance and capacity too. There can be many constraints like capacity and cost which could limit 3G cellular network’s availability to the general public. 3G services are creating big changes in not only how people access the web but also what they access.

With internet’s availability on smartphones, new services would be introduced in the category of mobile commerce. All of these applications are already providing great services like informational applications and online mapping which provide great details of services in the nearby areas.

Because of this, while the big carriers are the ones who would receive the most benefits from 3G networks, several smaller companies too are planning to take advantage of this infrastructure in order to provide applications which were never thought of before.

Smartphones and 3G

The introduction of 3G networks would have a large impact on smarphones. The Smartphones had been initially designed mainly for the corporate users but since then they have quickly penetrated the consumer market.

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There is a huge demand today for these phones and for mobile broadband. For this reason there has been a major focus on devices which can target general consumers as well as business users since people today realize that these are more or less the same.

With several 2.0 applications becoming available on the 3G networks, the business users would make more use of the smartphones and use them on vacations as well as at home because of the consumer applications which are now available on these phones.

Smartphones today are creating a whole new market along with several new features and the need for openness which includes the ability to use any mobile broadband and wireless device.

All of these factors would change the way 3G internet would operate, allowing the mobile devices to reach their maximum potential along with plenty of 3G applications. These devices would have more features and would be more powerful.

3G technology takes connectivity and mobility to a whole new level and creates potential for home automation and consumer devices. The first ever innovation had been the access to internet from the desktop to the smartphone and mobile devices and now the next step would be to make it accessible everywhere else.

Accessing internet through 4G and 3G would no longer be restricted to smartphones nad computers and ultimately consumers would be able to connect through automobiles, consumer devices and more.

The 2009 vehicles of Chrysler would have mobile internet access as their standard feature. All of the vehicles include UConnect services which allow 3G cellular internet services through the Wi-Fi hotspots and allow users to use their smartphones and their notebooks while on the move.

Consumer equipment

As of now, the biggest drawback for 3G broadband services is the consumer premises equipment and this would be a major obstacle in bringing 3G to the larger market who are used to the low cost devices and subsidized cable.

WiMAX and the other 3G broadband networks would need their subscribers to shell out $200 to $300 in order to install the equipment which is quite large an amount. The consumers might not really balk at the cost since currently people are already splurging on costly handsets costing $600 and even more.

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However, in order to get a wider consumer base, the providers would have to offer something extra like incentives in order to entice the customers. in the long terms, the problem might be automatically solved since the actual cost of 3G networks would decrease with the passage of time as technology would become cheaper.

3G services in other countries

Even though US has some of the most savvy customers, 3G internet is also gaining much popularity in other countries at a very fast pace since the 2G internet is already well established in the US.

In fact, in Japan the first 3G networks had already been introduced by NTT DoCoMo. Asia has been significantly ahead when it comes to the 3G networks and this has been a main component of the economic foundation for several countries in Europe and Asia.

The global markets which lack broadband are looking for high speed internet services now for the first time and it makes it easier to go directly wireless when there is no wired connectivity base. Taiwan has been particularly aggressive when it comes to wireless broadband since the government is granting licenses and asking the carriers to build their 3G networks at a faster pace. Also, since most of the devices and chipsets are manufactured in Taiwan there is a considerable advantage there.
Understanding 4G
3G is quickly dominating the market and is here to stay. With 3G the consumers would have access to internet no matter where they are, wireless with speeds of broadband.

However, with talks of 4G networks already developing, though it does not really mean much right now, chances are that 4G would be bigger than 3G. There is no real definition of 4G yet except that it would be next after 3G since it has not been invented or worked out yet.

However, it can be assumed that 4G will offer higher data rates and would provide newer features like global mobility, television broadcasts, streaming videos and live chat. This would allow the smartphone users to use their devices even while they are abroad and use applications which they had never thought of before. 

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