At the same time, we were moving from 2G to faster 3G mobile data networks, and Wi-Fi was growing.
The cellular telecommunications industry is entering a period of transition from aging, analog-era transmission technology to high-speed "third-generation" (3G) mobile networks.
What may come even sooner, however, is an iPhone able to take advantage of next-generation--or so-called 3G--mobile data networks.
The proliferation of WiFi and mobile networks we know as 3G and 4G, has spawned mobile apps which are at once exciting and disruptive.
These days, smartphones and 3G networks are pushing mobile applications to the fore.
In the fourth quarter of 2011, the increase in the number of customers using smartphones, along with T-Mobile USA's continued upgrade of its 3G and 4G networks helped drive Internet access revenue growth through the increased customer adoption of mobile broadband data plans.
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Both protocols are expected to allow smartphone users to upload and download mobile Web data faster than current 3G networks.
Deutsche Telekom executives maintained that their delay in launching 3G data networks hasn't hurt T-Mobile much.
More speed means more consumption, and Cisco projects mobile speeds (including 2G, 3G and 4G networks) to increase nine-fold from 2011 to 2016.
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Today, we have powerful smartphones and tablets, 3G and 4G networks and easy-to-use mobile apps that connect directly back to the server.
Both Android-powered smartphones will operate on Sprint's 3G and 4G LTE networks, bringing 4G LTE to Boost Mobile customers in more than 50 markets, including Atlanta, Baltimore, Dallas and Houston, and will be available in nearly 170 additional cities in the coming months.
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Some mobile operators that are running both Wi-Fi networks and 3G networks say the cost of building more capacity in the Wi-Fi network is only 10% of the cost to do so in the 3G network.
Operators need to offload this new type of data traffic to Wi-Fi networks fast, to relieve the 3G networks as they plan their build-out strategy for even more mobile data use.
China Mobile, for instance, recently announced that it will build out its 3G networks in eight Chinese cities before the Olympics--an opportunity for IDT.
Mobile internet usage in Africa is increasing rapidly as Orange continues to deploy 3G networks and make more low-cost smartphones available, customers have been steadily moving from basic feature phones towards more low-cost Android smartphones.
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But with about 230 million and 150 million subscribers, respectively, China Unicom and China Telecom are dwarfed by China Mobile, which is hoping to move its subscribers en masse to faster 3G and LTE networks next year.
Cricket offers nationwide wireless voice and mobile data services over high-quality, all-digital 4G LTE and 3G CDMA wireless networks.
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