Apple will announce the next version of the iPhone tomorrow, which may be called the iPhone 5. Only Apple knows what features the new iPhone will have, but my hope is that it will include access to the fast 4G LTE network in addition to the 3G network supported by current iPhones. Earlier this year, Apple added 4G LTE to the iPad, so it makes sense to me that this feature will be extended to the iPhone tomorrow. Additionally, the Wall Street Journal has reported that the new iPhone will include 4G LTE, and their reporters typically have good sources for Apple information.
We'll have to see how fast 4G LTE on the new iPhone will be, but on other smartphones 4G LTE can be up to ten times faster than 3G, so this feature on the new iPhone should make it considerably faster to surf the web, download music, stream video, etc. even when Wi-Fi is not available. If you are at your home, office, etc. where Wi-Fi is available, Wi-Fi will typically be about twice as fast as 4G LTE, but this can vary based on many circumstances so there will be times when 4G LTE is actually faster than Wi-Fi.
But even if the new iPhone supports 4G LTE, is 4G LTE available where you live? The answer varies based upon the carrier that you use. Here in the U.S., the iPhone is available on three carriers, and they all offer 4G LTE, but not in all cities.
AT&T currently has 4G LTE in 60 markets:
- Akron, OH
- Anchorage, AK
- Athens, GA
- Atlanta, GA
- Autin, TX
- Bakersifield, CA
- Baltimore, MD
- Baton Rouge, LA
- Bloomington, IN
- Boston, MA
- Bridgeport, CT
- Buffalo, NY
- Burlington, NC
- Byan-College Station, TX
- Canton, OH
- Chapel Hill, NC
- Charlotte, NC
- Chicago, IL
- Cleveland, OH
- Corpus Christi, TX
- Dallas-Fort Worth, TX
- Fayettevile-Springsdale-Rogers, AR
- Fort Lauderdale, FL
- Gainesville, GA
- Greensboro-Winston-Salem, NC
- Houston, TX
- Indianapolis, IN
- Jacksonville, FL
- Kansas City, MO
- Lafayette, IN
- Las Vegas, NV
- Lawrenceburg, TN
- Los Angeles, CA
- Miami, FL
- Modesto, CA
- Muncie, IN
- Naples, FL
- Nashville, TN
- New Orleans, LA [yeah for me!]
- New York, NY
- Oakland, CA
- Oklahoma City, OK
- Omaha, NE
- Orlando, FL
- Phoenix, AZ
- Raleigh-Durham, NC
- San Antonio, TX
- San Diego, CA
- San Francisco, CA
- San Jose, CA
- San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Sarasota-Bradenton, FL
- St. Louis, MO
- Syracuse, NY
- Tampa-St. Petersburg, FL
- Waco TX
- Washington, DC
- West Palm Beach, FL
- Wichita, KA
- Worcester, MA
AT&T will add 4G LTE to the following cities by the end of 2012:
- Albany, NY
- Albuquerque, NM
- Allentown, PA
- Birmingham, AL
- Boise, ID
- Boulder, CO
- Cincinnati, OH
- Charleston, SC
- Columbia, SC
- Columbus, OH
- Denver, CO
- Detroit, MI
- El Paso, TX
- Fayetteville, NC
- Fort Myers, FL
- Gary, IN
- Grand Rapids, MI
- Green Bay, WI
- Harrisburg, PA
- Hartford, CT
- Honolulu, HI
- Knoxville, TN
- Lancaster, PA
- Little Rock, AR
- Louisville, KY
- Memphis, TN
- Milwaukee, WI
- Minneapolis-Saint Paul, MN
- Nashua, NH
- New Haven, CT
- Philadelphia, PA
- Pittsburgh, PA
- Portland, ME
- Providence, RI
- Reading, PA
- Rochester, NY
- Sacramento, CA
- Salinas-Seaside-Monterey, CA
- Seattle, WA
- Springfield, MA
- Toledo, OH
- Tucson, AZ
- Tulsa, OK
- Wilkes-Barre, PA
- Wilmington, DE
Verizon has a much larger 4G LTE coverage with 371 cities. That's too many markets to list here, but here is a map from the Verizon website with red dots on the cities that have 4G LTE, and you can click here to check the Verizon website to determine your city is on the list.
If you use an iPhone with Sprint, 4G LTE coverage is currently available in these 18 cities:
- Atlanta, GA
- Athens, GA
- Baltimore, MD
- Calhoun, GA
- Carrollton, GA
- Dallas-Fort Worth, TX
- Gainesville, GA
- Granbury-Hood County, TX
- Houston, TX
- Huntsville, TX
- Kansas City, MO / Kansas City, KS
- Manhattan-Junction City, KS
- Newnan, GA
- Rome, GA
- San Antonio, TX
- Sedalia, MO
- St. Joseph, MO
- Waco, TX
Sprint says that in the "coming months" (who knows if that means before the end of 2012 or not) 4G LTE will come to 100 additional cities. Click here for a page on the Sprint website that lists those cities.
