On May 14th LightSquared officially filed the paperwork to initiate Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings in Manhattan's US Bankruptcy Court. This date is almost a year since Sprint signed an agreement that would ensure a 15 year LTE relationship, however, fell through after LightSquared was unable to account for GPS interference. LightSquared was unable to convince the FCC that they could make the system work and the bankruptcy will void over $1.6 billion in debt they accumulated trying to fix their system. LightSquared has had quite the saga, however, with this turn it looks like their fate is finally sealed.   

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Related Links:

• FCC to Reject LightSquared's LTE Bid
• GPS Industry says LightSquared Should be Barred

Coverage is also being expanded in Burlington and Northern Vermont in the following cities:

• Barnet
• Barre
• Brookfield
• Burlington
• Cambridge
• Colchester
• Coventry
• Ely
• Essex
• Fairfax
• Ferrisburg
• Georgia
• Jeffersonville
• Jericho
• Lyndon
• Lyndonville
• Middlebury
• Middlesex
• Milton
• Montpelier
• Morrisville
• Newport
• Randolph
• Saint Albans
• Saint Johnsbury
• Shelburne
• Smugglers Notch
• South Burlington
• Stowe
• Thetford
• Underhill
• Vergennes
• Williston

As of April 19, Verizon's 4G LTE network covers more than two-thirds of the U.S. population - allowing consumers in 230 markets to take advantage of blazingly fast speeds with six times more coverage than AT&T. By the end of 2012, the Verizon Wireless 4G LTE network will be in more than 400 markets, and available to more than 260 million people in the United States. In real-world, fully loaded network environments, Verizon Wireless’ 4G LTE customers should experience average data rates of 5 to 12 megabits per second (Mbps) on the downlink and 2 to 5 Mbps on the uplink. 

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Related Links:

• Order Verizon 3G/4G Modems
• Order 4G LTE Antenna's
• Check Coverage With 3Gstore's 3G/4G Coverage Map

Dish network's boss Charlie Ergen recently picked up $350 million worth of debt from LightSquared, which recently failed to meet the FCC's requirement to build a next gen 4G LTE network. The move by Dish is perceived to give them greater spectrum holdings to hopefully succeed where LightSquared failed. "I guess I’d answer it from a big-picture perspective, which is, our focus right now is really on getting the FCC approval," Said Ergen when asked about the deal. Dish's plans should be approved because their version of LTE wouldn't impact GPS networks, however, others believe Dish is doing this to drive up spectrum costs before a sale to AT&T.

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. & VANCOUVER, British Columbia (BUSINESS WIRE), May 09, 2012 - Sprint (NYSE: S) and Sierra Wireless (NASDAQ: SWIR) (TSX: SW) today announced the May 18 availability of the first-ever device to combine 4G connections over LTE and WiMAX networks, Sierra Wireless™ 4G LTE Tri-Fi Hotspot for the Sprint network. Sierra Wireless Tri-Fi Hotspot provides the best combination of speed and coverage to Sprint customers as the upcoming 4G LTE network expands and allows families, small businesses and traveling co-workers to easily share high-speed connections.

Beginning May 18, customers will be able to purchase a Sierra Wireless Tri-Fi Hotspot for $99.99 (excluding taxes) after a $50 mail-in-rebate with a two-year service agreement.

Sprint data plans for the device start at $34.99 for 3GB of combined 3G/4G data while on the Sprint network. Customers also can choose the $49.99 plan with 6GB of combined 3G/4G data or $79.99 for 12GB of 3G/4G data, which deliver 20 percent more data for the same price as AT&T and Verizon’s similar plans.

With this versatile device, customers can extend their Sprint 3G/4G experience beyond their laptops to up to eight Wi-Fi enabled devices, such as cameras, music players, personal media players and portable game consoles. In addition, its microSD™ slot allows teams to share files and presentations with network storage, and it can be used as a digital media server. It is simple to set up and connect with no software required.

“Sprint and Sierra Wireless are once again giving customers the flexibility to enjoy 4G performance in any Sprint 4G WiMAX market along with our upcoming 4G LTE markets or Sprint’s reliable 3G network when outside a 4G area,” said David Owens, vice president-Product Development, Sprint. “Sierra Wireless Tri-Fi Hotspot combines simplicity with compact portability and security to make it ideal for both personal and business use in a variety of situations.”

Powered by a 3600mAh battery, Sierra Wireless Tri-Fi Hotspot offers up to eight hours of use and up to eight weeks on standby, helping to ensure it is always ready when needed, even for power users who work away from their desks all day. Similar to Sierra Wireless’ Overdrive Pro™ 3G/4G Mobile Hotspot, this device offers a highly informative display screen that provides all the information needed for daily use, including the hotspot name and access code, battery life, number of devices connected, and whether the current connection to the network is 3G or 4G.

“We are excited to be part of Sprint’s 4G LTE network deployment and launch,” said Dan Schieler, senior vice president, Mobile Computing for Sierra Wireless. “The Tri-Fi Hotspot ensures Sprint customers can reliably make use of the best network connection available to them in a given location and continue to enjoy the freedom of mobile broadband virtually anywhere they go.”

With Sierra Wireless Tri-Fi Hotspot:

• Consumers and businesses can work remotely anywhere in a 4G coverage area (or virtually anywhere with 3G) and easily connect a laptop, smartphone, tablet or wireless phone through a single connection.
• Teams that are traveling can share Internet access with each other at hotels, airports and conference centers.
• Taxis, limos and shuttle buses can provide Internet access for customer use while en route to their destination.
• Health care teams can rely on an easy, reliable, power-up-and-go solution to use in Emergency Response Team (ERT) Go Kits or while treating patients bedside.
• Engineering, construction and insurance teams can instantly upload data, pictures of sites, accidents and images remotely.
• Reporters first on the scene of a breaking story can share access to upload stories and photos while at the scene, without missing a beat.

Sierra Wireless and Sprint have enjoyed a long collaboration in leading-edge technology deployments, including in the launch of the Sprint 4G WiMAX network. To assist in Sprint’s LTE network deployment, Sierra Wireless developed the world’s first LTE Band 25 devices for use in network testing and then provided these devices to Sprint and its network infrastructure partners to facilitate the network deployment.

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Related Links:

• Order Sprint 3G/4G Modems
• Order Routers for Sprint Modems
• Boost 4G LTE Reception

Wilson Sleek 4G for Verizon LTE (PN 815126)

Wilson was showing the new Sleek 4G-V for Verizon (AT&T version under development for AT&T LTE).  This update to the popular Wilson Sleek Cellular Signal booster adds Verizon LTE boosting.  The amplifier is a cradle where you insert your phone or MiFi (4510L or 4620L, etc) and it will boost your signal which will mean less dropped calls and faster data speeds.

Here are the features:

• Reduces dropped calls, extends signal range, and increases data rates
• Works with Verizon LTE Phones and MiFis (4510L, 4620L)
• Built in amplifier boosts signals to and from cell sites
• Up to 20 TIMES more output power to cell site when in a vehicle
• Receives weak signals the phone alone may not
• Built-in port for battery charging
• Extends battery life (Amplifier enables phone to work at reduced power)
• Simplifies hands free operation
• Installs in minutes  (no special tools required)
• Package includes everything needed (plug-and-play)
• Attractive, compact design
• Adjustable arms to fit most any phone
• Provides a strong, reliable signal on the Verizon Wireless 4G LTE band...even in weak signal areas.

 

3Gstore is now taking pre-orders for the 815126 - Wilson Sleek 4G for Verizon.

 

Shortly after CTIA began they're already talking about LTE-Advanced testing, which is defined as the next step from 4G LTE. To qualify as LTE-Advanced mobile networks must be capable of 100Mbit/s downlink speeds in mobile environments and 1Gbit/s for stationary downloads. Nigel Wright, VP of wireless marketing for Spirent, says "We expect to be working with several chipset vendors later this year, first on our solutions and then on some significant changes that come from carrier aggregation," Wright says. "If you're talking to two or three different cells, which is the primary one? Which one do you do measurements on? We'll have new scenarios there to reflect that."

"The infrastructure part is not so difficult," adds Mike Barrick, business development manager for Anritsu's wireless portfolio. "Building carrier aggregation into chipsets and devices is much more difficult." Qualcomm is current the only vendor that will support carrier aggregation on the Gobi platform, which will start sampling towards the end of the year. When the technology rolls out we should start seeing LTE-A devices debuting around 2014, so you'll have plenty of time to enjoy your 4G LTE devices before LTE takes another giant leap.