VERIZON WIRELESS USERS REPORTING DATA OUTAGES

If you're having trouble getting a data connection on your Verizon-branded handset this morning, you're not alone. Based on Verizon's @vzwsupport Twitter feed and forums, it looks as if both 3G and 4G networks have been affected, although the 3G service appears to be working now. This is the third data outage for Verizon in a month, mostly affecting their 4G LTE deployment.

VERIZON 4G NETWORK DOWN IN SOME AREAS

If your Droid or other Verizon 4G LTE-yoked cell, dongle or MiFi isn't pulling down any high speed data then don't worry, at least you're in good company. Judging by reports cropping up all over the internet, the current Verizon outage on its fastest data connection is quite widespread. The company's official statement indicates engineers are currently trying to resolve the issue which cropped up in the last 24 hours, and reminds users the company's voice services and 3G network are still working fine, if you can call downloads maxing out at just a couple of megabits per second working.

A similar outage popped up back in April, and while there's no word on what exactly is behind the issue, we hope this one is resolved even more quickly. Until then, keep an eye on the @VZWSupport Twitter account for updates while we try to keep from letting this collapse of modern technology drag us all the way back into the dark ages of 1xRTT.

VERIZON DOUBLING 4G ALLOTMENT.....FOR A LIMITED TIME

Verizon Wireless will soon offer a promotion that provides its 4G LTE customers with twice the amount of data for the same monthly price. The special will kick off on November 11th at 11:11 a.m. EST to coincide with the Motorola DROID RAZR launch. The promotion works just how it sounds: if you currently pay for 2GB of data per month, you’ll receive 4GB for the same price. If you subscribe to a 5GB monthly plan, you’ll receive 10GB for the same price. Reportedly, existing customers will be able to add the option to their account by contacting customer service or by logging into their My Verizon account on Verizon’s website. Verizon did not say how long the promotion will last.

AT&T 4G LTE COMING TO NEW YORK SOON

Speaking during the Mashable Media Summit on Friday, AT&T’s senior vice president of communications Larry Solomon confirmed that AT&T will activate its 4G LTE network in New York City “very soon.” AT&T’s 4G LTE network is currently live in Atlanta, Chicacgo, Dallas-Forth Worth, Houston and San Antonio, and the carrier plans to activate the network in Athens, Boston, Baltimore and Washington, D.C. on Sunday, November 6th.

VERIZON LAUNCHES LTE 4G IN 22 MORE MARKETS

Verizon Wireless continues its march towards LTE dominance with the announcement it has lit up 22 more markets. The markets include Birmingham, Alabama; Modesto and Stockton, California; Fort Myers, Florida; South Bend, Mishawaka, Granger, Elkhart and Goshen, Indiana; Sioux City, Iowa; Hagerstown, Maryland; Tupelo, Mississippi; Albuquerque and Santa Fe, New Mexico; Buffalo, New York; Asheville, North Carolina; Bartlesville, Oklahoma; Jackson and Martin, Tennessee; Greater Hampton Roads and Richmond, Virginia and Green Bay, Wisconsin.

In addition Verizon is expanding its LTE footprint in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington D.C. and Erie, PA. On November 17th, Verizon Wireless will deploy 4G LTE in Little Rock, Arkansas; Savannah, Georgia; Cedar Rapids and Des Moines, Iowa; Lexington, Kentucky; Kansas City and Springfield, Missouri; Lincoln, Nebraska; Orange County, New York; Greater Providence; Rapid City, South Dakota; Roanoke, Virginia; and Appleton, Wisconsin. It will also expand the exiting footprints in in Louisville, Kentucky; Grand Rapids, Michigan; Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Nashville, Tennessee

VERIZON BEGINS FREE 4G LTE UPGRADE FOR MOTORLA XOOM

Motorola XOOM owners who want to take advantage of the promised 4G LTE upgrade can finally begin to do so beginning Thursday. Once a customer signs up to receive the upgrade, Verizon Wireless will send the shipping instructions along with a box. The option is free and Verizon Wireless said changes to data plans are not required. Verizon also advises that XOOM owners back up their devices before sending them in for the upgrade. The process is expected to take six business days. Verizon Wireless also announced on Wednesday that it will begin to sell the Motorola XOOM with 4G LTE pre-installed for $499.99 starting October 13th.

AT&T TO FINALLY LAUNCH FIRST SET OF4G MARKETS

During the Bank of America Merrill Lynch Media, Entertainment & Communications conference on Thursday, AT&T’s chief financial officer John Stephens said that AT&T will activate its 4G LTE network in its first five markets on Sunday, FierceWireless reported. The network has been active as part of a soft launch in the AT&T’s five markets, which include Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio.

Reports have shown a 4g tablet achieving download speeds around 22Mbps and screenshots of a 4G modem achieving 13Mbps download speeds in Chicago. In addition, the same modem reaching speeds up to 25Mbps in Atlanta. Of course all these have been on unloaded systems, so actual speeds may vary. AT&T hopes to activate its network in 15 total markets and launch its first LTE smartphone by the end of the year.

RUMOR: SPRINT IN TALKS TO ACQUIRE CLEARWIRE

Bloomberg is reporting Clearwire is currently in talks to sell its business to Sprint, and perhaps secure the funding it so desperately needs for a network build out. According to several insider sources, the third place wireless carrier's considering a joint investment (amongst other options) with Comcast, Cablevision and Cox, that would give the cablers a bundled high-speed, wireless broadband competitive advantage, and Sprint an LTE boost in its battle against AT&T and Verizon's rival 4G networks.

None of the players in this rumored takeover have yet to comment on the purported transaction, although the business gossip has had quite an uplifting effect on Clearwire's shares.

VERIZON WIRELESS 4G LTE NOW AVAILABLE TO HALF OF US POPULATION; AT&T NOT SO MUCH

Verizon Wireless on Thursday announced that its lightning fast 4G LTE network now covers more than half of the U.S. population. We have repeatedly called Verizon’s LTE network the fastest cellular network we’ve ever used, and the fact that the carrier has been able to roll it out so quickly with only a few hiccups is nothing short of impressive. ”In eight short months we’ve introduced our 4G LTE network to more than half of the U.S. population, while continuing to offer the nation’s most reliable 3G network coast to coast,” said David Small, chief technical officer of Verizon Wireless, in a statement. “This matters to millions of Americans because they can take advantage of faster 4G LTE speeds both at home and when they travel throughout the country – today and in many more markets to come this year. Each new market and expansion is significant as it brings us closer to delivering on the promise to bring our 4G LTE network to more than 185 million Americans by the end of 2011.”

AT&T on the other hand has just started deploying its LTE in a limited number of markets.

CLEARWIRE ANNOUNCES PLANS TO ADOPT 4G LTE

Clearwire on Wednesday announced its intent to adopt LTE across its network. The 4G wholesaler says it may add LTE Advanced-ready technology to its network that will provide up to 120Mbps download speeds according to network technology trials. ”Clearwire plans to raise the bar again for mobile broadband service in the United States,” said John Stanton, Clearwire’s Chairman and interim CEO, in a statement. “Our leadership in launching 4G services forced a major change in the competitive mobile data landscape. Now, we plan to bring our considerable spectrum portfolio to bear to deliver an LTE network capable of meeting the future demands of the market.”

Clearwire confirmed that it does not intend to discontinue support for its 4G WiMAX network in the near term, and it will continue to build out its WiMAX network. The company did not put a timeline on the plans, however, saying that its entire LTE deployment strategy is “subject to additional funding.”

LEAK: XOOM 4G UPGRADE COMING IN SEPTEMBER

To say we've been patiently waiting for the Xoom's promised 4G upgrade would certainly be an understatement. It looks like those of you counting on blistering speeds this summer are flat out of luck, as the LTE overhaul apparently won't begin until fall. Droid-Life's got a snap of a seemingly official Verizon memo, which alleges that the FCC-espied gratis upgrade will apparently land sometime in September. Also mentioned are links to Big Red's website on how to backup and package one's slate for its eventual voyage back to Moto's mothership. Hop on over to the source to see the full communiqué, and peep the more coverage links if you enjoy being prepared entirely too far in advance.

DOWNSIDE TO 4G...NO ROAMING

Several companies are hopping on the LTE bandwagon, but it's turning out to be more isolating an experience than we hoped. According to PCMag, a Verizon spokesperson confirmed that its fourth-generation broadband network won't be compatible with other carriers in the US. As it turns out, Big Red and AT&T each own a separate block of 700MHz spectrum with only a fraction of overlap, leaving little room for phones on both networks to mingle with one another. There's not much hope for roaming on MetroPCS or LightSquared, either, as their waves of LTE run at 1700MHz and 1500MHz, respectively. This smattering of frequencies means it'll be near impossible to get roam on other companies' 4G networks nationally.

What's worse, the ITU has approved twelve bands for LTE use around the world, so don't count on a wide selection of global devices -- and you thought sorting through international 3G was bad, didn't you? We're still a long way from learning our LTE roaming fate, but it appears the largest carrier in the US won't make the journey any easier on us.

T-MOBILE INCREASES 4G HSPA+ SPEED IN 56 MARKETS

T-Mobile on Wednesday announced that it has doubled the theoretical download speed ceiling on its 4G HSPA+ network in 56 new markets. “America’s Largest 4G Network is now faster than ever and continues to deliver a fast and reliable broadband experience in more places than any other carrier,” said T-Mobile CTO Neville Ray in a statement. “Video streaming on T-Mobile’s network has more than tripled over the last year, and consumer demand for access to rich mobile content from anywhere continues to grow. T-Mobile is now supplying more than 170 million Americans with lightning-fast HSPA+ 42 speeds to feed that explosive demand.” For the time being, T-Mobile offers just one device capable of making full use of its new HSPA+ 42 service: the T-Mobile Rocket 3.0 laptop stick. The carrier has confirmed that it will launch its first HSPA+ 42-capable smartphone later this year, but it has provided no additional details or timeline.

VERIZON 3G CUSTOMERS CAN UPGRADE TO 4G AND KEEP UNLIMITED DATA PLAN

Great news for everyone on one of Verizon Wireless' unlimited data plans: if you're rocking a 3G smartphone, you can eventually upgrade to an LTE handset, keep the unlimited plan, and have access to a $30 / month 4G tethering plan. That's according to VZW's official Support account on Twitter, and it's decidedly lovely news for those who were concerned that they'd be locked into EV-DO forever.

NEW BILL WOULD FORCE CARRIERS TO REVEAL TRUTH ABOUT 4G

Though 4G’s definition is now anything but clear -- first it was fake, and then some solid lobbying on carriers’ parts convinced the International Telecommunication Union to sing a new tune that would allow telcos to call LTE, WiMAX and even certain 3G technologies “4G” without blatantly lying -- carrier marketing soon could be.

A new bill currently in hands of the U.S. House of Representatives could potentially require U.S. wireless service providers to define guaranteed minimum data speeds that customers can expect of their networks. Since two tin cans and a piece of string can basically be called a 4G network according to the ITU’s loose guidelines, this bill, dubbed the Next Generation Wireless Disclosure Act, would be a big step toward weaving through marketing tomfoolery and letting customers know just how 4G their 4G network really is.

While the benefits to subscribers are fairly obvious, whether or not the proposition might become law depends largely on how much lobbying carriers are prepared to do.

AT&T'S LTE NETWORK 2 - 3 YEARS BEHIND VERIZON'S SAYS CEO

Speaking during a D9 press event in California on Thursday, AT&T Mobility’s CEO Ralph de la Vega said it will take AT&T between 2 and 3 years to bring its LTE network coverage up to a par with Verizon Wireless’ 4G offering. AT&T has already announced that it plans to deploy its 4G LTE network to five cities this summer, including Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio.

However, Verizon’s network is already available in 55 markets, it plans to deploy in 23 more this month, and the carrier has promised full 4G LTE coverage across its current 3G network by the end of 2013.

According to CNN, Ralph de la Vega said AT&T “can’t say when” its 4G network will match Verizon’s but said “in the next two to three years they will probably be indistinguishable.” The carrier also reaffirmed that if its proposed acquisition of T-Mobile is approved, customers should see a large improvement the in overall quality and reliability of AT&T’s service.

RUMOR: iPAD3 WITH 4G LTE LAUNCHING BEFORE HOLIDAYS

Apple will release a new 4G LTE-enabled iPad tablet later this year according to Hong Kong-based research firm CLSA. The firm cites channel checks in stating that Apple’s iPad 3 will launch ahead of the holidays this year. CLSA also alludes to a Retina Display being on board alongside the new 4G LTE radio.

“While most vendors appear fixated on matching the specs and features of iPad2, our checks suggest Apple will release iPad3 in time for the holiday season, sporting a better display and LTE capabilities,” the firm’s report says. CLSA added that it does not expect Apple to launch a 4G LTE-enabled iPhone this year.

VERIZON LIGHTS UP LTE IN 21 MORE MARKETS ON JUNE 16TH

Verizon today announced the addition of 21 new markets to its LTE coverage, starting June 16th. The list includes some biggish spots, like Boise, ID, Milwaukee / Madison, WI, Salt Lake City, UT, and Hartford, CT -- Northern California will be getting a major coverage boost, as well, with the existing Bay Area coverage being expanded to Marin and Solano counties. The network launched with 38 markets back in December and those, plus these new additions and a handful announced earlier this month, are bringing the company ever closer to its proposed 175 markets by the end of the year. That's a whole lot of green stars.

RUMOR: iPHONE 5 TO BE NAMED iPHONE 4S; COMPATIBLE WITH SPRINT AND T-MOBILE

In a note to investors on Friday, Jefferies & Company analyst Peter Misek claimed knowledge of Apple’s fifth-generation iPhone. While most are now in agreement that Apple will not unveil its new iPhone until September this year at the earliest, thereby breaking its annual summer release cycle for the first time, the feature set coming in Apple’s next iPhone remains a topic of debate.

Misek’s channel checks found that the next iPhone will be called the “iPhone 4S,” and it will feature minor cosmetic updates, Apple’s A5 processor, better cameras and HSPA+ support. More interestingly, perhaps, Misek claims that the next-gen iPhone will be picked up by both Sprint and T-Mobile. Of course we already knew Apple was testing an iPhone compatible with T-Mobile’s network, but Misek’s note is the first confident claim that the device will launch on T-Mobile since our exclusive report.

Regarding 4G LTE compatibility, Misek says the Qualcomm LTE chip Apple would use in a 4G model is not available in the quantities Apple would need for the huge production volumes that are expected. This claim jibes with earlier reports that Apple’s iPhone is not likely to support LTE until next year at the earliest.

VERIZON OTA UPDATE FOR THUNDERBOLT LACKS LTE FIX

Verizon's finally sending that OTA firmware update for the Thunderbolt. Owners of the flagship device can grab it now through a manual download, and the good news is that it's meant to fix some connectivity issues. Bad news is it's just for 3G. The new code is also meant to stabilize data-dependent apps, speed up GPS updates for Google Maps and VZ Navigator, and fix a few minor messaging glitches. Guess we will have to wait longer for the LTE fix to arrive.