AT&T customers can rejoice because the carrier is bringing its high speed mobile internet to Huntsville this summer.
Senior student and AT&T user Michael Kemble said that although AT&T could do better, the introduction of the upgraded 4G LTE service will be a nice thing to have.
“That’s pretty cool,” senior student Michael Kemble said. “Although I’d wish they would build a new tower closer to Huntsville, having 4G LTE here is nice.”
Senior student and Sprint user Mo Silva said that AT&T’s move would be good for competitive reasons.”It would definitely give more competition to the other carriers in this area,” Silva said. “It obviously comes down to personal preference in the end, but that’s good news for them nonetheless.”
LTE means “long-term evolution,” which is commonly marketed as 4G LTE. It is based on the GSM/EDGE network technologies, increasing the capacity and speed using a different radio interface together with core network improvements. This allows peak download rates of up to 299.6 Megabits per second and upload rates up to 75.4 Megabits per second.
Although 4G LTE will be in Huntsville, this does not mean that cell reception will improve. This is a software update to the cell tower near Huntsville that will allow 4G LTE data to be utilized by AT&T customers.
“The only way cell service can improve for AT&T users is if the cell tower is closer,” Silva said. “The software update doesn’t amplify the signal strength.”
Kemble complained about AT&T’s spotty coverage in Huntsville.
“It’s really annoying,” Kemble said. “I barely get service in my own apartment. I’ve lost count of how many times I got super late texts and dropped calls.”
Reports of spotty coverage may continue for AT&T customers in Huntsville, but high-speed mobile internet is a good consolation.