4G speeding to Tampa area cell phones

Perhaps your smart phone seems zippy enough. Perhaps it needs an overdrive gear to handle all that e-mail, photo uploads and Facebook updates - without dropping a call every other try.

That overdrive gear is exactly what the biggest cellular providers have in mind, and hope to launch in the Tampa Bay area - some within a couple months, some by the end of next year.

It's called "4G" or "fourth generation" cellular, and while these are early stages, if everything works out with the deployment, 4G systems could significantly speed up your mobile life, if you're willing to buy another new phone.

And in one of the newest signs of progress, a new store in the International Plaza is under construction by 4G newcomer called "Clearwire" - set to open by year's end to sell 4G phones, computer links and other gadgets.

As for the name "4G," here's the explanation: This represents the fourth major upgrade for cell phones, starting with first-generation phones that could only make calls, then to phones that could send messages, and then to phones that could browse the Internet and use GPS.

For most callers, 4G will mean their smart phones will work much more like a desktop computer connected to a broadband Internet link - with live, cellular face-to-face video conferencing, better location systems and smoother apps.

And if all goes well, 4G will also open up cellular networks to all sorts of other devices, such as wireless ultrasound monitors for medical professionals. For gear-heads out there, the theoretical top speed of 4G is about 100 megabytes per second download. Cellular companies acknowledge real-life speeds probably won't be near that fast, but 4G could rival current home and office broadband service.

Clearwire

There are a few early devices in the market that already run on 4G - such as Internet plugs for notebook computers. And if customers are lucky enough to have an Evo phone from Sprint, they may be getting 4G speeds in some spots of Tampa Bay.

Cellular carriers have more extensive systems in a few other test markets. Now it's the Tampa Bay area's turn for a general deployment.

Some of the first 4G service to make a big splash will come from a relative newcomer called Clearwire.

Clearwire Corp. is a Kirkland, Wash.-based wireless company that bought up wide parts of the wireless spectrum cell phones use. It has partnered with a slew of cable TV providers, investors such as Intel Corp., Google Inc. and the cellular company Sprint, which owns a majority stake in Clearwire.

Clearwire started 4G tests in Jacksonville several years ago, and has a system up and running in parts of Daytona.

Clearwire could open its International Plaza store by year's end, selling phones under the name "Clear," said spokesman Jim Grimes. Clearwire will also sell network access to lots of other companies under their own brand, such as Sprint.

Sprint

Sprint's first 4G offering is the "EVO" phone, which runs the Android operating system, offered at $199, with a $100 rebate and a $79 per month plan. But due to a manufacturing glitch, there have been few EVO phones available.

There's also a 4G Samsung "Epic" for $249 after rebate. One major feature: Front and back-facing cameras, so callers can do live video chats using the 4G system. An Apple iPhone 4, by contrast, needs a high-speed WiFi connection to perform live, face-to-face video chats.

Sprint Spokeswoman Crystal Davis said Sprint will focus more next year on embedded 4G devices, such as laptops and e-book readers with 4G access.

To test your own mobile broadband speeds, the Federal Communications Commission has a free phone app that measures your connection speed. It's available on both the iTunes and Android marketplace stores.

Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile

Meanwhile, other carriers are quickly deploying their own, rival 4G systems.

This summer, Verizon hosted a small event for its business customers at a Tampa hotel to explain what 4G could do for other data systems besides phones.

Network provider Cisco partnered up and demonstrated a system that let ambulance medics take an ultrasound image of a patient's sprained ankle and transmit the images live to doctors at a hospital.

Another demonstration showed an air conditioner repair technician pointing a camera into a broken AC unit, while talking with a repair center, where other technicians could recommend the right replacement part.

T-Mobile is focusing on an interim step to get to 4G-like speeds called HSPA+, and T-Mobile has laptop connecters available, with more phones arriving through next year.

Verizon plans on rolling out 4G in 25 to 30 U.S. markets by the end of 2010. Though Verizon hasn't disclosed exactly which cities, spokesman Chuck Hamby notes Tampa was "at the forefront of 3G deployment," when that technology unfolded.

Cellular giant AT&T, which runs Apple iPhones and iPads, hasn't announced specific plans for 4G in Tampa, but they plan to start trials this year and deploy commercially in 2011. Meanwhile, AT&T is speeding up its current 3G network as a step in the right direction.