Verizon's 4G Network Might Launch in Mid November

Verizon Wireless has promised to have its 4G network up and running and available to 100 million people by year's end. An unconfirmed report says the launch of this very high speed LTE network will be in the middle of November.

LTE will give subscribers significantly faster data transfers than the carrier's current 3G network, which uses the EV-DO Rev. A standard.

Verizon will reportedly turn 4G service on 25 metropolitan markets around November 15. Aside from the test markets of Boston and Seattle, it's not known which parts of the country will be getting this new service.

The carrier will introduce its first devices capable of connecting to its LTE network on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving (Nov. 26). Exactly what these will be is not yet known. Offerings to let laptops connect are virtually certain, so the only question is when Verizon will introduce its first 4G smartphone.

LTE Smartphones in Development
Verizon's CEO Lowell McAdam says that all the top smartphone makers are working on models for his company's 4G network. This includes HTC, LG, Motorola, and BlackBerry-maker Research In Motion.

McAdam has predicted that by next spring Verizon will be offering three to five phones with LTE support.

More about LTE
Verizon's LTE network will provide data transfer speeds much higher than current 3G networks. In ideal conditions, LTE will offer 40-50 Mbps for downloads and 20-25 Mbps for uploads. According to trials held in Verizon's test markets of Boston and Seattle, this 4G network will offer average download speeds of 5-12 megabits per second (Mbps) and upload speeds of 2-5 Mbps in real world environments.

The carrier plans to offer LTE service in 25 to 30 U.S. markets covering roughly 100 million people by year's end.

LTE is a data-only service, so Verizon's first-generation LTE models are expected to also offer support for its voice-only network that uses the CDMA standard. These models will also include the 3G standard EV-DO.

Pricing for this new high-speed service is expected to be tiered, with customers paying more based on how much data they transfer. An unlimited plan is considered unlikely.

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