Are they killing EDGE in the US?

[difenbaker]

Will EDGE be released first? Or will the US have WCDMA first? Do you think that the introduction of EDGE was postponed?

According to this link:

http://killerconcepts.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=7187#7187

"It’ll only be in four very lucky cities — San Francisco, Seattle, Phoenix, and Detroit — at first, but AT&T Wireless (which still hasn’t been aborbed into Cingular quite yet) might launch their new high-speed 3G wireless service as early as next week.

(Got that from the s710 thead). It doesn't mention though if the service to be launched is EDGE or not.



Now we go to another link, a more recent one:

http://www.mobile9.com/news/2004/07/att_to_offer_3g_service.php

According to Reuters, AT&T Wireless is preparing to launch 3G service for four WCDMA based cities. Those of which are thought to be San Francisco, Seattle, Poenix and Detroit.

Initial equipment will include a data card, a Nokia phone, and the Mototola A845, which features 2-way video calling and Bluetooth. AT&T Wireless claims its WCDMA network will provide data speeds of about 200-300 Kbps. AT&T Wireless has a committment to Japan's NTT DoCoMo, who owns a 16% stake in the company, to launch 3G using WCMDA technology by the end of the year.

That last one clearly states that WCDMA is the service to be lauched before the year ends, not EDGE.

So.... does it mean that phones like the SE s710 and the nokia 6620 will be flops? I mean, if AT&T releases 3G speeds using WCDMA, then people will most likely buy the 6630 instead, right?



:)

cheers!

[nefertem]

Well, it's not that simple. ATTW has a contractual obligation, through NTT DoCoMo, which own 16% of ATTW, to delpoy WCDMA by year's end. EDGE is already up and running is all the markets that ATT has covered with GSM. It's not that they are killing or abandoning EDGE, it's just that WCDMA is the next step for GSM. Moreover, since most 3G handsets also support GSM (and some EDGE), there is no need to kill one technology to deploy another. Eventually EDGE will be fazed out, but that's not going to happen anytime some. 3G still has a ways to go.

[joecartoon22]

so is att the only place that i can use my s710a when it comes out? as well, you think the s710a will cost a lot more than the s700?

[nefertem]

Cingular is also slowly deploying EDGE and 3G. Since Cingular is buying ATTW, and will soon have a GSM footprint on par with Verizon's CDMA network, you will have EDGE just about everywhere in the U.S.

[difenbaker]

Originally posted by nefertem
Well, it's not that simple. ATTW has a contractual obligation, through NTT DoCoMo, which own 16% of ATTW, to delpoy WCDMA by year's end. EDGE is already up and running is all the markets that ATT has covered with GSM. It's not that they are killing or abandoning EDGE, it's just that WCDMA is the next step for GSM. Moreover, since most 3G handsets also support GSM (and some EDGE), there is no need to kill one technology to deploy another. Eventually EDGE will be fazed out, but that's not going to happen anytime some. 3G still has a ways to go.

Thanks for the info. So it means that wcdma will probably be out first - since AT&T has that "before the end of the year" deadline anyway. The thing that I find funny is... there's only, I think, only 4 handsets(?) which has 3g wcdma (that motorola, the nokia 9500, 7600 and 6630), and yet there are so many other handsets which has EDGE already. (3200, 6230, 6230b, 6620, s710...)

Yup, 3G still has ways to go.... but thinking about it, if AT&T does come out with wcdma first, and it sells or is well received, would people still want to have EDGE then? Maybe... then again, maybe not.

:)

cheers!

[TheZodiac]

Once AT&T is obsorbed by Cing, ad EDGE is offered by Cing, AT&T will be leasing space of of Sprints CDMA network and getting back into the cellphone game (Cing has 6 months to rape the ATT brand though, according to the aquisition contract) WCDMA and GSM are not protocol compatible, so WCDMA is not a logical step for GSM. Its a logical step for CDMA. EDGE incorporates GSM/GPRS (based on TDMA) This is why it was/has been made compatible. If AT&T is releasing a WCDMA it is because of a deal with Sprint most likely, since they have an interest in its network now once they get back into the game after Cing.

Also - Cing is testing their next gen network in FLA... and its neither EDGE nor WCDMA (by acronym, anyway). At least thats what all news sources are reporting (AP, Reuters, etc) They also report that that particular 3D for Cing is a few years off for completion.

[jesus_thats_gre]

WCDMA/UMTS is the next step for most GSM/GPRS networks throughout the world though. It is not a natural progression but its the only means being even considered throughout the whole of Europe...

I was under the impression that most existing CDMA networks in both the states and Asia were not evolving to WCDMA, but were in fact moving to CDMA2000 or whatever its been called now..

[fabarati]

Originally posted by difenbaker
The thing that I find funny is... there's only, I think, only 4 handsets(?) which has 3g wcdma (that motorola, the nokia 9500, 7600 and 6630)

sorry but the 9500 is not WCDMA, just edge. but u're forgetting the "nice" nec's, some other motorolas, and of course the Z1010. + a lg or two. go to http://www.3gtoday.com/devices/DevicesByTechnology.html#WCDMA to see all the wcdma phones. the ones with foma written after their names works only in japan and ntt docoma(o?).

Just for the record, i live in sweden, and we have had WCDMA for little more than a year