Articles tagged with: 4g

The first Mobile WiMax network in Europe has now gone live in Amsterdam, offering speeds "comparable to broadband" from anywhere within the city's ring road for €20 (£16) a month.

Being mobile, the network conforms to the 802.11e standard for WiMax, which means it can be used on the move, rather than just from stationary laptops...

Turns out that whole digital switchover isn't just about being able to watch Simon Schama 24/7 on UKTV History - it's actually all about freeing up space for new services. Ofcom's just published detailed proposals of what it actually plans to do with all the spare bandwidth that turning off analogue TV will create.

The bandwidth will be auctioned off in UK-wide chunks and Ofcom believes high-speed mobile broadband, aka 4G, will be one of the top uses. Mobile telly is also a prime candidate for using the space, as well as extra standard or HD channels.

So, you're waiting patiently for the 3G iPhone - how about a 4G BlackBerry? The Boy Genius Report, which has a pretty good track record on these things, has unearthed what it claims is a forthcoming touchscreen BlackBerry 9500, dubbed the Thunder.

BGR's mock up (pictured) shows it sporting a similar form factor to the iPhone but with four physical buttons to Apple's one. It's a clear challenge to Apple's baby - and it has a major ace up its sleeve; 4G, which BGR predicts will be of the LTE (Long Term Evolution) variety that promises speeds of over 100Mbps. That's more than 13 times slicker than today's fastest HSDPA networks.

The catch? There may not be actually be a 4G network for it to use when it rolls by in 'Q3 of this year' as BGR claims. It's also expected to be a Vodafone exclusive, which should make up a bit for that O2 iPhone thingy.

Remember the stampede created by the auction for 3G licences? It could all be about to happen again. Ofcom is has confirmed it'll be auctioning off a colossal 205MHz of spectrum - its largest ever release - in the bands most suited to mobile broadband.