4G looms following successful tests

 

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By Matthew Sparkes

Posted on 21 Dec 2007 at 10:10

Nokia Siemens Networks claims to have successfully tested its 3G successor, dubbed Long Term Evolution (LTE).

The test saw LTE, which is in competition with WiMax, reach data rates in excess of 100Mb/sec, according to reports from CNet.

The trials apparently used existing network infrastructure, which may mean that LTE could be implemented without costly upgrades to a provider's infrastructure.

Theoretically, LTE technology is capable of 173Mb/sec transfer rates, more than double that of WiMax. However, WiMax has a significant advantage in that it is already in use in many installations.

Sprint says it is working on rolling out WiMax in US cities early in 2008, and it is already used to provide Wi-Fi on train services in the UK. Nokia is also planning to release WiMax enabled handsets in the New Year.

"We can demonstrate that LTE meets the high expectations set for this new technology. Most importantly, we now have evidence that future LTE networks can run on existing base station sites and mobile operators can build LTE networks without requiring new antenna sites," Matthias Reiss, head of LTE at NSN, says to CNet.