This week, Optus has joined Telstra in delivering high speed mobile broadband access to regions of Australia, taking advantage of a fourth-generation mobile network.
Since its launch in September of last year, Telstra’s 4G connection has been flying, showing mobile Internet speeds of up to 40Mbps in areas and providing faster than ADSL2 connectivity for handheld devices in the metropolitan areas around the nation.
Now, it’s time for Optus to show what it has been working on in this area.
From today, Optus is making 4G services available to business customers using its network in Sydney and Perth, with the service starting on two devices, an Optus 4G USB modem and an Optus 4G mobile WiFi modem.
“Australian businesses want fast, reliable mobile broadband that lets them work flexibly, enabling new and exciting ways to interact and transact with their customers,” said Günther Ottendorfer, Optus Networks Managing Director. “Our investment in next-generation 4G mobile technology provides businesses with the choice of faster speeds over 4G, now backed by a stronger 3G network.”
The “stronger 3G network” comes from over a thousand upgrades to 3G sites across the country, boosting 3G performance in Sydney, Melbourne, Darwin, and Perth, with enhancements coming to Brisbane, Wollongong, Newcastle, and Adelaide later in the year.
That’s not all Optus has planned, with a faster 4G connection coming in 2013. Optus is testing an even faster technology for this system, with the 4G TD-LTE or “Time-Division Long-Term Evolution” network going into testing in Sydney.
This week, Optus showed just how fast the new network is, reaching speeds of up to 87Mbps at present time, with room to move.
“As Australians rely more on smartphones and other connected devices, our goal is to have one single integrated 4G network that utilises the latest LTE technologies to offer our customers a great 4G network experience,” said Mr. Ottendorfer.
For now, the new Optus 4G access will be available to business users in Sydney, Newcastle, and Perth from $35 per month for 10GB, with access coming to consumers later in the year.
Was Optus smart enough to choose frequencies that allow the iPad to go 4G? That would have guaranteed plenty of sales.
We checked, actually, and were told that no, the current iPad couldn’t jump onto any 4G network in Australia, including theirs.
True high speed 4G LTE requires a mimo arial array of 4 arials spaced out at exactly there wavelength which at 900Mhz is 30cm x 30cm, not exactly mobile.