AT&T launches 4G LTE in 24 new markets including Denver & Columbus

Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
Just in time for the launch of Apple's LTE-capable iPad mini and fourth-generation iPad, AT&T this week turned on its 4G LTE network in 24 markets across the U.S.

The announcement of the 24 new markets comes as AT&T also began sales of Apple's latest iPads, which feature high-speed 4G LTE radios, along with the iPhone 5.

A total of 16 new LTE-capable markets were announced by AT&T on Friday. They are:
  • Charleston, S.C.
  • Columbia, S.C.
  • Columbus, Ohio
  • Corvallis, Ore.
  • Downriver Wayne & Monroe Counties, Det.
  • El Paso, Tex.
  • Eugene, Ore.
  • Fairfield County, Conn.
  • Greater Mobile, Ala.
  • Greenville, S.C.
  • Jonesboro, Ark.
  • Pensacola, Fla.
  • Portland, Maine
  • Provo-Orem, Utah
  • Saratoga & Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
  • South Bend, Ind.
  • Toledo, Ohio
Those 16 new locations were joined by eight more that were announced by AT&T earlier this week. Those markets were:
  • Anne Arundel County, Md.
  • Daytona Beach, Fla.
  • Denver, Colo.
  • Louisville, Ken.
  • Milwaukee, Wis.
  • Tacoma, Wash.
  • Twin Cities, Minn.
  • York, Penn.
LTE

AT&T said Friday that its 4G LTE network covers more than 150 million people in 103 markets across the U.S., a number that more than doubles the company's LTE coverage as of the end of 2011. More expansions are planned through the end of the year.

AT&T plans to have its LTE network reach 250 million people by the end of 2013, and 300 million by the end of 2014.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 16

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by AppleInsider View Post

    AT&T said Friday that its 4G LTE network covers more than 150 million people in 103 markets across the U.S., a number that more than doubles the company's LTE coverage as of the end of 2011. More expansions are planned through the end of the year.


     


    Yay, only 300 more markets to go to catch up to Verizon.


     


     


    Quote:




    AT&T plans to have its LTE network reach 250 million people by the end of 2013, and 300 million by the end of 2014.



    Meanwhile Verizon will done with their entire footprint by mid 2013. AT&T will be almost a full year and a half behind, ouch. Their lucky they have a decent HSPA+ to fall back to. 

  • Reply 2 of 16
    solipsismxsolipsismx Posts: 19,566member
    Yay, only 300 more markets to go to catch up to Verizon

    Sure, but Verizon had to roll out faster and harder than any GSM-based carrier because EV-DO (3G) is incredibly slow compared to HSPA+/DC-HSDPA (3G).
  • Reply 3 of 16
    vorsosvorsos Posts: 302member


    That's great and all, but how about expanding coverage elsewhere to be usable? I get one useless bar of signal at work and in my apartment. Granted, I can usually see plenty of people wandering outside on their phones, so maybe my apt complex is insulated with lead.


     


    IMO, AT&T and Verizon are the equal of two evils when comparing their behavior towards data plans.

  • Reply 4 of 16
    neilmneilm Posts: 985member
    Although I have an iPhone 5, which is of course LTE capable, my home location has no AT&T LTE service yet. However last week I was passing through the Detroit airport on my way to Europe and noticed a nice strong LTE signal showing up on the display for the first time. So I did some random web surfing to try it out.

    Holy [bleep]! Yes, LTE really is fast. I didn't bother to run a speed test, but from a subjective point of view it's a night and day difference. Web pages snap up in no time, email is checked and downloaded - done! Reminds me of a few years ago when we first got 3G here and left EDGE behind.
  • Reply 5 of 16
    galleygalley Posts: 971member
    Can't wait to get home from vacation to try out the LTE in Greenville!
  • Reply 6 of 16
    sdw2001sdw2001 Posts: 18,014member
    As someone that nearly switched to VZ when getting my iPhone 5, I was pleased to see that AT&T rolled out LTE service near where I work (suburban Philly). I didn't think was planned, but a few days after I got my iPhone 5, I started getting LTE service at work. Home is another story though...as I'm about 15 miles West of where I work. There it's still the enhanced 3G they bill as "4G"
  • Reply 7 of 16
    galleygalley Posts: 971member
    neilm wrote: »
    Although I have an iPhone 5, which is of course LTE capable, my home location has no AT&T LTE service yet. However last week I was passing through the Detroit airport on my way to Europe and noticed a nice strong LTE signal showing up on the display for the first time. So I did some random web surfing to try it out.
    Holy [bleep]! Yes, LTE really is fast. I didn't bother to run a speed test, but from a subjective point of view it's a night and day difference. Web pages snap up in no time, email is checked and downloaded - done! Reminds me of a few years ago when we first got 3G here and left EDGE behind.

    I got 32.57 Mbps in Atlanta. Great Googly Moogly!
  • Reply 8 of 16
    Pensacola, here... Yep! I saw LTE show up on my iPhone5 yesterday and promptly did a speedtest.net check. 30 Mbps. :)
  • Reply 9 of 16
    I live in Provo, UT and I had my phone in my hand when I noticed it switch to LTE on Tuesday. I was shocked! I was only getting 300k that day, but it still switched. On Wednesday it was working fantastically. Depending on which site I'm connected to (and congestion I guess) I get anywhere from 10-40 Mbps. Even at work where the data service is basically unusable during the day as I work at Brigham Young University which has 32,000 students.

    I was frankly really surprised when I went up to Salt Lake City for SuperComputing 2012 yesterday and found that there was no LTE there.
  • Reply 10 of 16

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Vorsos View Post


    That's great and all, but how about expanding coverage elsewhere to be usable? I get one useless bar of signal at work and in my apartment. Granted, I can usually see plenty of people wandering outside on their phones, so maybe my apt complex is insulated with lead.


     


    IMO, AT&T and Verizon are the equal of two evils when comparing their behavior towards data plans.



     


    +1  after living through the lack of backhaul in downtown Minneapolis (I was literally on the wrong side of the building, but I was getting a tower that happened to server the 35W/94 area in South Minneapolis.  Literally shut down at 3:30pm-6:30pm.


     


    Now I work in the hinterlands of ATT on the north side of town... toying with switching to the VZN.... but... as you noted... there is no lesser of the evils here.

  • Reply 11 of 16

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Galley View Post





    I got 32.57 Mbps in Atlanta. Great Googly Moogly!


    post again speeds Jan 3.  My guess there will be a bit of 'erosion' of peak speeds as the bandwidth gets absorbed by upgrades. (5% of US phones upgrade during the holidays)


     


    I just don't see the backhaul keeping up.   It's one thing to build a network for devices that suck 4mbps each... it's another for a device 8X faster.

  • Reply 12 of 16


    AT&T's network is astronomically faster than Verizons Older LTE network.  I get 30-40mb in Tampa.  It is as fast as Verizons Fiber Service (FIOS).       Whenever you see the Verizon commercial comparing the size of the networks, and the charts they are showing people.  Notice in the beginning, they say "LTE" is the fastest data network, then they skip right to coverage.    Verizons 7mb LTE network is NOT the same as AT&Ts 30-40mb LTE network.     I see a huge tide turning in the next year as AT&T's network gains the same coverage as Verizon but it 3-4 times faster.


     


     


    Good news!

  • Reply 13 of 16
    What's up with Apple and AT&T? Why are there no AT&T models available.
  • Reply 14 of 16

    Quote:

    Originally Posted by Macboy Pro View Post


    AT&T's network is astronomically faster than Verizons Older LTE network.  I get 30-40mb in Tampa.  It is as fast as Verizons Fiber Service (FIOS).       Whenever you see the Verizon commercial comparing the size of the networks, and the charts they are showing people.  Notice in the beginning, they say "LTE" is the fastest data network, then they skip right to coverage.    Verizons 7mb LTE network is NOT the same as AT&Ts 30-40mb LTE network.     I see a huge tide turning in the next year as AT&T's network gains the same coverage as Verizon but it 3-4 times faster.


     


     


    Good news!



    That's very true here in NYC as well.

  • Reply 15 of 16
    jfc1138jfc1138 Posts: 3,090member
    I expect my new cellular mini to rock. My 5 goes nuts, even in New York (granted on weekends). At home I've got WiFi so any lack of bars is of no issue there.
  • Reply 16 of 16
    WTH!??? Why no AT&T LTE in the San Fernando Valley (just a few miles from downtown Los Angeles)??? Verizon has covered the SFV for a year now. Granted, AT&T HSPA+ is faster at times than Verizon's LTE, but you'd think that an area with more than 2 million people 20x10 miles in size would rate LTE service.
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