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AT&T to Complete 3G Rollout by June

Wednesday May 21, 2008 11:19 am PDT by Arnold Kim
AT&T announced today that they will complete their deployment of HSUPA (3G upload) technology in the six remaining markets across AT&T's entire 3G (third-generation) wireless broadband network.

This will complement its deployment of its HSDPA (3G download) network, making AT&T the only U.S. carrier to have fully deployed HSPA (up and down) technology on its 3G network. AT&T's 3G network is available in more than 275 markets and will expand to nearly 350 markets by year's end.

With the new addition of HSUPA technology, AT&T 3G users can enjoy uplink speeds between 500 and 800 Kbps. The technology is available in all but the few remaining AT&T 3G markets and will be included in all future deployments. The new upload speeds complement AT&T's 3G download capabilities, which currently offer up to 1.4 Mbps across all markets for customers who have capable devices, such as AT&T's LaptopConnect wireless modems.

The timing of the rollout conveniently coincides with the rumored 3G-capable iPhone launch, though fast upload speeds, which is the technology described in this press release is less critical for the current version of the iPhone. In the future, as applications are deployed on the iPhone, uploading larger files, such as video, or even video chat from the iPhone could become more common. Regardless, the "completion" of their 3G network in time for a June iPhone rollout remains interesting.

U.S. customers can use this map to determine if they have 3G coverage in their area. A list of cities is also provided.

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