What Will Be The Successor To 3G?

Mobile data connection speeds of of 100 Mb/s or over is something that we can benefit from, and this future sensation called 4G is not too far away. At the moment the UK uses the 3G network and compared to the upcoming 4G has terrible speeds with a UK average of 1.5 Mb/s or in good coverage areas 7.5 Mb/s.

Trials were held in December last year by O2. The mobile companies are getting ready to use the 800MHz spectrum, which has recently been freed up on the 18th of April by switching off the Analogue TV signals. They tried the 4G trail using the 2.6GHz spectrum, which was meant to be the 3G expansion but was left unused because of legal trouble between the networks. Although we might have to wait until next year until we start to see 4G being rolled out to us its definitely something worth waiting for.

The CEO of O2 explained that the 4G services will be a huge benefit to consumers and business:

"The forthcoming spectrum auction is a watershed moment for the UK mobile industry, releasing the airwaves that will power a whole range of exciting next generation mobile services.  The new spectrum will increase capacity, quality and speed (we estimate that mobile broadband capacity will increase by 20 to 40 times from today's levels), and will allow us to deliver true connectivity through a suite of innovative digital services."