Allow us to bring you up to speed in case you missed it — Verizon Wireless just announced that it will finally begin carrying the iPhone 4 starting on February 10th. It’s kind of a big deal. There are definitely plenty of positives tied to the Verizon iPhone, of course. For starters, choice is always a good thing and the fact that AT&T finally lost iPhone exclusivity will benefit consumers in a big way. And there are plenty more benefits as well — for example, there’s a redesigned antenna that might reduce the effects of the death grip, and a mobile hotspot option that AT&T iPhone users have been wishing for since Android first popularized the feature. But it’s not all double rainbows and jazz hands, we’re afraid. There are definitely some areas where Verizon’s upcoming iPhone 4 is sorely lacking, and we’ve listed a few of the main missteps after the break.

Slooooooooow
This was covered in our feature yesterday entitled Why I’m not switching to the Verizon iPhone: Need for speed. Verizon’s 3G network, while sturdier than the Great Wall of China, is slower than your great grandmother driving a Cadillac on the highway. Ok, it’s really not that slow and it’s more than quick enough to handle basic functions like Web browsing, email and use of basic apps. But this is 2011 and data speeds should be increasing, not decreasing. If heavier usage is your cup of tea — streaming media, data-gulping apps and so on — Verizon’s 3G service crawls.

Those who jump ship from AT&T could be in for a rude awakening in this department. Then again, they also might finally be able to make phone calls.

No simultaneous voice and data
There was an off chance that Verizon Wireless would finally announce a solution for simultaneous voice and data over its CDMA network, but it didn’t happen. We’ll just have to wait for the LTE-enabled version of the iPhone to drop in 2012. In the meantime, if you want to talk and receive emails on your iPhone 4 at the same time, you’ll need AT&T. After all, where would we be without young professionals traipsing through our city streets with their faces buried in smartphones while they bark at their Bluetooth headsets?

Roam or get off the pot
Roamers may have a tough time finding ways to travel internationally with their Verizon iPhones. Well, they can travel anywhere they want with their iPhones as long as they don’t need to talk or use cellular data. Verizon’s iPhone 4 will only operate on CDMA networks and the rest of the world, for the most part, uses GSM. There are some countries where Verizon iPhone users will be able to roam on CDMA, but service won’t be great in many cases — and prepare to sell some organs a month later when your bill arrives.

To be fair, however, AT&T iPhone users may have to cough up the deeds to their houses as well if they roam internationally. It’s not cheap. Less expensive options used to be just a jailbreak, an unlock and a prepaid local SIM away, but the iPhone 4 complicates matters thanks to its Micro-SIM. Average users definitely won’t be hacking up foreign a SIM card to perform a Micro-SIM-ectomy, so international roamers are basically screwed in either camp.

No 4G
Verizon’s entire presence at CES last week was focused on one thing and one thing alone: 4G. Its LTE network is now live in 38 markets and a flurry of 4G phones will launch in the coming months. But the iPhone… the smartphone millions of Verizon Wireless subscribers have been dying for… is a 3G device.

We knew Verizon’s iPhone 4 would be a CDMA phone for a number of reasons, but 3G is so 2010. Sprint launched its first 4G phone with minimal WiMAX coverage and it ended up being the fastest-selling phone in the carrier’s history. Now, we won’t see a 4G iPhone from Verizon until 2012. That means while millions of Android phones are surfing Verizon’s 4G airwaves later this year, iPhones will still be puttering along at EVDO speeds.

UPDATE: Post updated to remove a reference to FaceTime over 3G, which will not be available on Verizon’s iPhone 4.

Yesterday, my cohorts weighed in on the question on countless iPhone owners’ minds right now — should I ditch AT&T and buy an iPhone from Verizon? The answer is going to be different for everyone, of course. Some people have a compulsive need to switch phones constantly, so they can’t use a CDMA carrier. Some people have a need for speed and Verizon’s 3G network doesn’t cut it. Well guess what? I have a need for a phone that actually works wherever and whenever I want it to. That need is way more important than any need I have to swap phones every day or download iTunes tracks at lightning-fast speeds. I want to make phone calls. I want to receive emails instantly. I want to load Web pages and refresh apps any time, anywhere. AT&T, fast as it might be, just can’t hang.

Before AT&T scored Apple’s iPhone exclusively in the U.S., its network was solid. Once tons of iPhones began hammering its airwaves constantly, however, things changed — especially in big cities. Calls dropped more frequently than they connected, data pipes were clogged, and the iPhone experience on AT&T pretty much became a disaster in many regions. Now, it wasn’t all AT&T’s fault. Reports emerged that Apple, which was new to the cell phone game, didn’t quite know how to make the most efficient use of cellular networks. Internationally, iPhone users on several other networks found themselves experiencing problems as well, but none were as bad as AT&T. To AT&T’s credit, things have improved a lot over the past six months or so, but I still drop calls constantly in Connecticut and in New York City, where I spend most of my time.

I don’t think we’ll see the same thing happen with Verizon Wireless. The nation’s top carrier has had over three years to prepare for the iPhone and I think it’s ready. Beyond that, a video showing what appears to be parts from the upcoming Verizon iPhone surfaced recently, and it looks like we may be in store for a redesigned antenna. Antennagate might not have affected iPhone sales much, much it definitely impacts the user experience. I don’t use a case and I’m sick of dropping calls every time I accidentally touch the black strip in the lower left corner of the phone. I think Apple spent a ton of time on this issue following the Antennagate affair, and I think the new model will definitely be improved.

There are obvious downsides to switching and I’m well aware of them. Verizon’s 3G is typically slower than AT&T’s network, battery life will probably be a tiny bit worse, and I’ll lose the ability to use voice and data at the same time unless Verizon shocks us with a workaround today. But you know what? I dropped five calls before 9:00AM this morning and I just can’t take it anymore. I’m someone who needs to be connected at all times, in all places, and I need to be able to rely on that connection because by business often depends on it. AT&T simply doesn’t seem to be up to the task — I really hope Verizon will succeed where AT&T continues to fail.

The image above says it all. It shows a screen capture of an actual speed test performed on an Apple iPhone 4 while connected to AT&T’s 3G network in northern New Jersey. It is not an anomaly. In fact it’s pretty standard in my home town and in the surrounding areas. Sometimes my download speed is faster and sometimes it’s slower, but it generally stays between 3.5 and 5Mbps¹. I can’t give that up.

Verizon Wireless has an incredibly strong network. It works everywhere, seemingly without fail, and hopefully the carrier can maintain its reputation as a rock solid network even after it is infested with data-gulping iPhones. What the Verizon Wireless network is not, however, is fast. In my town, which is roughly 15 minutes northwest of the George Washington Bridge, Verizon’s average download speed sits around 800Kbps¹. The fastest I’ve seen it in this area is just over 1Mbps. I use Verizon devices all the time as part of my job, and I often carry them with me outside my job. When I want to do something that involves downloading large files or streaming video content, I use an AT&T phone.

But what about reliability? AT&T is horrible! Wrong. AT&T might be horrible for you, but it works just fine for me. Not always, of course, but often enough that I have no interest in switching my main personal account to another provider and sacrificing data speed in the process. In late 2009 and early 2010, it was a very different story. I could rarely make phone calls in the area around my office in New York City and had Verizon scored the iPhone back then, I would have switched in a second. But beginning last summer, however, AT&T’s service in midtown Manhattan improved dramatically.

The other big part my decision comes down to the core reason any “my network is better than your network” argument is patently ridiculous. A network’s coverage, performance and reliability vary greatly depending on region — without exception. Notice the full five bars my iPhone 4 was reporting when the screen shot above was captured. Along with every other AT&T phone I have lying around, my iPhone just about always displays five bars of coverage near my home, office and nearly everywhere else I go in the area. Even when I give it the death grip.

In 2012 when AT&T and Verizon Wireless each have LTE networks that offer widespread coverage and speedy data connections, I’ll reassess the situation. I expect a 4G LTE iPhone to launch for both networks in 2012, so pricing and coverage will become the two main factors I consider. Today, however, switching from AT&T to Verizon would be like switching from broadband to dial-up — and I just can’t handle that.

¹Figures represent estimated average download speeds observed on AT&T and Verizon Wireless’ 3G data networks. The figures are based on independent speed tests performed using various devices with various speed test applications and are in no way scientific.

Dell is having a hard time getting its T-Mobile compliant Windows Phone 7 handset — the Venue Pro – shipped in time for the holidays, but that hasn’t stopped the company from sending at second iteration of the device to the FCC for approval. A Venue Pro sporting WCDMA bands II and V — AT&T’s 850MHz and 1900MHz 3G bands — has crossed the government agency’s desk. If you’re an AT&T, Bell, Rogers, or Telus customer, and fancy the vertical-sliding device, this is encouraging news. While FCC approval doesn’t guarantee a release, it is certainly a step in the right direction. Any customers of the aforementioned carriers interested in the Venue Pro?

[Via Engadget]

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This morning, Nokia Siemens announced that it would acquire $1.2 billion in network infrastructure assets from telecom giant Motorola. As the press release states: “Motorola’s networks infrastructure business provides products and services for wireless networks, including GSM, CDMA, WCDMA, WiMAX and LTE. This business is a market leader in WiMAX, with 41 contracts in 21 countries; has a strong global footprint in CDMA with 30 active networks in 22 countries; and a robust GSM installed base, with more than 80 active networks in 66 countries; and excellent traction with LTE early adopters.” Some of the highlights of the deal include:

Transaction expected to significantly strengthen Nokia Siemens Networks’ presence globally, particularly in the United States and Japan.

Nokia Siemens Networks targeting to gain incumbent relationships with more than 50 operators and strengthen relationships with others.

Acquisition to enhance position of Nokia Siemens Networks in key wireless technologies; will give company large global footprint in CDMA.

Motorola retains the iDEN business, substantially all the patents related to its wireless network infrastructure business, and other selected assets.

The companies expect to complete closing activities by the end of 2010.

The biggest CDMA player in the U.S. — Verizon Wireless — released a statement saying, “This deal brings together two important Verizon suppliers; we look forward to our continuing work with Nokia Siemens Networks.” We’ve got the full press release after the bounce.

Nokia Siemens Networks to Acquire Certain Wireless Network Infrastructure Assets of Motorola for USD 1.2 Billion

Nokia Siemens Networks and Motorola, Inc. today jointly announced that the companies have entered into an agreement under which Nokia Siemens Networks will acquire the majority of Motorola’s wireless network infrastructure assets for USD 1.2 billion in cash. The companies expect to complete closing activities by the end of 2010, subject to customary closing conditions including regulatory approvals.

“This is an exciting acquisition that I believe has significant benefits for customers, employees and our shareholders,” said Rajeev Suri, Chief Executive Officer of Nokia Siemens Networks. “Motorola’s current customers will continue to get world-class support for their installed base and a clear path for transitioning to next generation technologies while employees will join an industry leader with global scale and reach. Nokia Siemens Networks will see the benefits of a deal that is expected to enhance profitability and cash-flow and to have significant upside potential.”

“Motorola is very proud of the operational and financial performance of our Networks business and its employees, who will now become a valuable addition to Nokia Siemens Networks. We are excited to have reached this agreement to combine our Networks team with such an industry leader,” said Greg Brown, Co-CEO of Motorola. “This is great news for our customers, our investors and our people and will allow us to sharpen our strategic focus on providing mission and business critical solutions for our government, public safety, and enterprise customers.”

As part of the transaction, Nokia Siemens Networks expects to gain incumbent relationships with more than 50 operators and to strengthen its position with China Mobile, Clearwire, KDDI, Sprint, Verizon Wireless and Vodafone.

“We are pleased to be able to add new relationships with some customers, and reinforce our position with others,” said Suri. “I believe the addition of Motorola’s Networks business will significantly strengthen our worldwide presence, enhance our scale in the United States, Japan and other priority regions and reinforce our leadership position in the global wireless sector.”

“Verizon views today’s announcement as good news for the global wireless industry,” said Richard J. Lynch, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of Verizon. “This deal brings together two important Verizon suppliers; we look forward to our continuing work with Nokia Siemens Networks.”

Nokia Siemens Networks expects that based on revenue, with the addition of the Motorola wireless network infrastructure business, it will become the #3 wireless infrastructure vendor in the United States, the #1 foreign wireless vendor in Japan, and strengthen its current #2 position in the global infrastructure segment.

Motorola’s networks infrastructure business provides products and services for wireless networks, including GSM, CDMA, WCDMA, WiMAX and LTE. This business is a market leader in WiMAX, with 41 contracts in 21 countries; has a strong global footprint in CDMA with 30 active networks in 22 countries; and a robust GSM installed base, with more than 80 active networks in 66 countries; and excellent traction with LTE early adopters.

“As customers look to transition from CDMA networks to next generation technologies, the addition of the Motorola wireless network infrastructure business is targeted to ensure that we are well placed to meet those needs,” said Bosco Novak, head of Customer Operations at Nokia Siemens Networks. “Together, we will utilize the combined strength of Nokia Siemens Networks’ TD-LTE solutions and Motorola’s WiMAX and LTE businesses, to better meet customers’ evolving technology and business needs.”

Approximately 7,500 employees are expected to transfer to Nokia Siemens Networks from Motorola’s wireless network infrastructure business when the transaction closes, including large research and development sites in the United States, China and India. Motorola retains the iDEN business, substantially all the patents related to its wireless network infrastructure business and other selected assets.

The companies expect to complete closing activities by the end of 2010 and therefore do not expect the transaction to have any impact on Nokia Siemens Networks’ financial performance in 2010. Nokia Siemens Networks and Motorola also are exploring a global relationship in the public safety arena. This relationship would combine Motorola’s leadership in providing solutions to public safety organizations with Nokia Siemens Networks’ commercial LTE solutions.

Conference Call and Webcast Nokia Siemens Networks and Motorola will host a conference call for media beginning at 10:30 a.m. (U.S. Eastern Time) on Monday, July 19. The conference call will be webcast live with audio at http://www.motorola.com/investor.

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We haven’t heard anything about this from our connects at either AT&T or Nokia, but a filing made available two days ago by the FCC has us believing that AT&T might be planning on offering up the Internet Stick CS-12. Featuring all of the appropriate GSM and WCDMA bands needed to function on AT&T, the CS-12 is capable of supporting downlink speeds of up to 14.4Mbps and uplink speeds of 5.56Mbps. Of course, AT&T’s network is in no way capable of getting anywhere near those speeds — with most markets still stick in a hellish 3.6Mbps nightmare — as the slow rollout of 7.2Mbps continues. Perhaps this new stick has something to do with Ralph de la Vega’s recent talk of  ”certain locations” getting access to a 21Mbps HSPA+ network on the way to LTE.

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We told you earlier this month that the Nexus One would be coming to AT&T and we now have the first sharable shred of evidence that our source was spot on. Spotted emerging from the testing halls of the FCC is an unknown mobile phone with the FCC ID NM899110. For the geeky folk, the NM8 is the FCC Grantee code for HTC while 99110 is the model. People who rock a Nexus One and have a penchant for studying FCC labels would notice that the FCC ID for this mystery handset is only a single digit away from the FCC ID of the current Nexus One (NM899100) and would be quick to recognize that this mystery handset is most likely a kissing cousin to their T-Mobile-friendly handset. Without looking at the FCC documents, one might casually pass this mystery handset off as the upcoming Verizon Wireless CDMA version, but a quick perusal of the testing report reveals that the handset in question is rocking WCDMA bands I, II and V which are decidedly AT&T. Any Nexus One owners crawling on AT&T’s EDGE a bit peeved by this discovery?

[Via Engadget]

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Uh oh, you know what this means, boys and girls. No, it’s not that we particularly care what TELUS is up to, it’s that the Motorola MILESTONE TELUS releases will have North American 3G bands (850/1900MHz). But, even though we’re not jumping with joy doesn’t mean you aren’t, and for you our dear Canadian readers, we’ve got the scoop on everything you’d want to know about the MILESTONE.

We’ve been told that it will be coming “only to TELUS” so it sounds like an exclusive to us, at least for a certain amount of time. That early 2010 timeframe is pretty vague, we know, but we’ve been told it is spot on and that Motorola and TELUS are planning to announce something in the next couple of days. Lastly, we’ve confirmed that just like its European brother, the Motorola MILESTONE for TELUS will feature multitouch out of the box.

Pricing is unconfirmed at this time.

News that Nokia’s first foray into notebook territory is on its way to the US — as a Best Buy exclusive — managed to get Booklet 3G hopefuls all riled up recently. While we still have no time line in terms of when the sleek laptop might become available, we may now at least know what Nokia and Best Buy plan to charge for the Booklet. According to a purported screen shot of Best Buy’s inventory system, the Booklet 3G will run $599.99. What’s more, the screen shot suggests that inventory began landing at BBY on September 25th and if that is in fact the case, a launch could occur sooner than we thought. $600 may seem like a tall order for a 1.6GHz netbook with 1GB of RAM and a 120GB hard drive but as we’ve said in the past: if this Windows 7-powered lappy comes anywhere close to delivering the 12 hours of battery life Nokia claims, it might be worth just about any price tag Nokia slaps on it.

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This morning, AT&T took the wraps off its plan to upgrade 3G in various markets across the US this year. By various markets, we mean exactly six. HSPA 7.2, or High Speed Packet Access capable of providing downlink speeds up to 7.2Mbps, will theoretically provide a tremendous boost to AT&T’s 3G network speeds ahead of its eventual 4G rollout. As you may recall, Apple’s iPhone 3GS handset is HSPA 7.2-ready and owners have been waiting impatiently for word on when they might actually be able to take advantage of the higher-speed data services they were promised. Unfortunately, unless you live in and around Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles or Miami, the answer is still unknown. The six aforementioned markets are due to go live before the end of 2009 and AT&T claims another 19 unnamed major markets will go live by the end of 2010. The majority of AT&T’s remaining 3G footprint is slated to be upgraded by the end of 2011 — while many are (hopefully) already enjoying LTE. So to AT&T customers in the six markets listed above, congrats. The rest of you will unfortunately have to make due with what you have in the meantime.

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Having theoretically learned something from the N810 WiMAX Edition debacle, Nokia now seems to be letting the market dictate where wireless technology is headed as opposed to trying to cut competition off at the pass. The result: a focus on future-ready products as opposed to tablets no one wants with a broadband connectivity option no one has. This morning Nokia announced the successful trials and partner availability of its RD-3 internet modem. The RD-3 is a modem component that supports an array of GSM/EDGE, WCDMA/HSPA and of course LTE bands, making it an ideal development tool for network vendors, OEMs and operators. Nokia, paving the way for LTE development and adoption… We like it.

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Ahhh, the Nokia N900. You want it. You need it. You’ve got to have it. If you’re on T-Mobile you’re sitting pretty knowing that 1700 MHz is included in the N900′s three WCDMA bands, just waiting to gobble up T-Mobile’s 3G services. If you’re on AT&T in the US or Rogers up north however, the tears may still be streaming. A glimmer of hope found its way to light last week when rumors that a forthcoming 850/1900/2100 MHz WCDMA version were seemingly substantiated. We just spoke to Nokia however, and yeah… Not so much. Nokia’s official statement:

Regarding the Nokia N900, we have announced a tri-band WCDMA version that utilizes the 900/1700/2100 MHz networks. There have been no announcements regarding a version that supports the 850/1900/2100MHz bands.

As it turns out, The Nokia Blog’s tipster completely fabricated the last line of Nokia’s email — you know, the part that said, “An announcement will be forthcoming” — and the whole story is bogus. We suppose AT&T and Rogers subscribers might be able to keep hope alive considering Nokia still hasn’t flat out denied the possibility of a WCDMA 850/1900/2100 MHz version, but if you ask us it’s time to break out the Ben & Jerry’s and drown your sorrows.

Well boys and girls, welcome to the final installment of Carrier Wars — the series of features in which we call upon our readers who represent each of the four major US wireless carriers to report the 3G speeds they’re experiencing across the country. It’s been quite a trip but the fourth and final carrier, T-Mobile USA, is now accounted for, which means its time to line everyone up side by side and see where the chips fell. So sit back, relax and hit the jump to see how your carrier stacks up against the competition.

To quickly recap where we’re at right now: AT&T was first up and recorded a pretty respectable average download speed of 933kbps, besting next in line, Verizon Wireless, by a solid 232kbps. The nation’s number three carrier, Sprint Nextel, was next to bat and it knocked one out of the park. Sprint set the bar quite high with an average download speed of 1361kbps, leaving T-Mobile with quite a hill to climb should it manage to register an upset. Tmo has the newest 3G network with the least amount of congestion however, so number four could definitely swoop in and surprise us all, Right? Right? Yeah, not so much.

• Average download speed: 786kbps
• Median download speed: 748kbps
• Average upload speed: 177kbps
• Median upload speed: 136kbps

According to the speeds experienced and recorded by our readers, T-Mobile slides into the number three slot having bested Big Red by 85kbps. On the upload side of things, T-Mobile comes in dead last with an average speed of 177kbps, just short of the equally pathetic 180kbps put up by AT&T. Of note, T-Mobile was definitely the most consistent carrier our readers tested — the speed test results were very level compared to the sharp peaks and deep valleys found in other carrier’s test results. In fact, trimming the download data to omit oddities as we did with the three other carriers barely affected T-Mobile’s numbers at all: Dropping the top and bottom five results left us with a download average of 767kbps and cutting the top and bottom 10 yielded 773kbps.

All things considered, Tmo has poured a lot into its 3G network — despite being insanely late to the party — so these results are somewhat disheartening. Subscribers shouldn’t despair, however. T-Mobile has no intention of getting caught with its pants down twice and it is already hard at work developing its 4G network, which will reportedly be deployed not long after the big boys’ LTE setups get the green light.

Let’s take a quick look at everything lined up nice and pretty:

Average Download Speed

1. Sprint: 1361kbs
2. AT&T: 933kbps
3. T-Mobile: 786kbps
4. Verizon: 701kbps

Average Upload Speed

1. Verizon: 322kbps
2. Sprint: 267kbps
3. AT&T: 180kbps
4. T-Mobile: 177kbps

There you have it folks — the final act of Carrier Wars is officially a wrap. While these numbers shouldn’t be considered absolute or scientific, they certainly give an accurate representation of each carrier’s 3G network speeds as experienced by our readers. So what does everyone think? Did the carriers’ performances land where you thought they would or were you surprised by our findings? Hit the comment section and be heard.

Again; for those interested, here is the data collected for T-Mobile.

Disclaimer: The results of these tests are not collected in a controlled environment and therefore should not be considered to represent a concrete indication of the above carriers’ 3G network speeds and/or performance in general. These results merely provide the average 3G network speeds of the above carriers as experienced by those readers who performed speed tests and shared their results. Stop whining.

Time to get your world traveling on, Verizon Wireless subscribers. Big Red has just announced the latest addition to its global roaming-ready mobile broadband lineup and as long as you can handle the rather loud choice of coloring, it’s not a bad option at all. The ZTE AD3700 USB modem packs just about every type of connectivity you could possibly need at the moment — EV-DO, GSM, GPRS, EDGE and UMTS are all covered in a single, relatively small package. The modem also features a USB connector that swivels to suit any and all laptop designs. As far as pricing and availability, the ZTE AD3700 will hit stores starting tomorrow for $79.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate on a new 2-year mobile broadband contract.

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What a long strange trip it’s been, mobile fans. Our Carrier Wars series has managed to tons of conversation surrounding the state of wireless carriers here in the US. Sure a lot of it is senseless banter, but beyond that there are legions of subscribers who are genuinely interested in learning what kind of performance BGR readers from across the country experience on their respective carriers. We told you each of the big four here in the US would be covered and sure enough, here we are at the last stop: T-Mobile USA. While T-Mobile’s 3G network is still in its infancy — albeit horribly late in the game — subscribers are often quick to sing Tmo’s 3G performance praise. Well T-Moblers, it’s your time to shine. If you have a 3G-ready handset and happen to find yourself in a covered region, we want to know what kind of speed you’re seeing. Remember, an ideal report includes handset model, AVERAGE download speed, AVERAGE upload speed and a link to a screenshot of your test. Feel free to throw your maximum speed numbers in there as well but they don’t concern us. Ok — hit the comments section and get to work!