T-Mobile Expanding HSPA+ Network in New York, Connecticut & Rhode Island; AT&T Hates It

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T-Mobile is apparently busy developing its ultra-fast HSPA+ 3G+ network and while it’s continuing to deploy it in more and more markets AT&T gets more and more angry at it.

AT&T is apparently pissed off by the fact that T-Mobile is allegedly misleading customers into believing HSPA+ is 4G. Well I can definitely understand why AT&T is annoyed with T-Mobile. The later one is building a better 3G+ network while AT&T is announcing “hotzones” in the middle of New York. I’d get angry too.

Sure, not that many people can make a difference between HSPA+, WiMAX, CDMA, GSM and other similar nonsense, but that’s why we, along everyone else writing about tech stuff, come in. We’re definitely ready to explain these acronyms and I am sure everyone looking for a 4G phone in the USA is already well aware that the only genuine 4G phone available out there right now is the HTC EVO 4G coming from Sprint on June 4. That’s an Android phone, running on Sprint’s CDMA and WiMAX bands for 3G and 4G connectivity, respectively.

T-Mobile HSPA+ is not 4G but it’s 3G+ or 3G++, but it’s still better, at least on paper than AT&T’s HSPA+ network. Both networks are investing in this technology and upgrading their networks before moving to actual 4G connectivity later next year. I don’t think AT&T can deny the fact that while T-Mobile offers theoretical speeds of up to 21Mbps, AT&T will only go up to 14Mbps for now.

T-Mobile announced today that it’s moving on with HSPA+ deployment in New York, Connecticut and Rhode Island, and, in AT&T’s defense, they did mention the words “4G speeds” when talking about their HSPA+ network:

Our competitors are asking consumers to pay more for faster wireless service with limited coverage and very few capable devices…In contrast, T-Mobile is already delivering 4G speeds today to customers and we continue to make major leaps in expanding our HSPA+ mobile broadband footprint.

Why did T-Mobile have to say “4G” in the first place? The carrier simply has to know that it will take a huge beating in the following months as Sprint’s HTC EVO 4G, AT&T’s iPhone 4G and Verizon’s HTC Droid Incredible will sell like hot cakes. And what hot phone does T-Mobile have to offer? Is that why they’re trying to lure some people with 4G claims? AT&T reacted accordingly:

I think that companies need to be careful that they’re not misleading customers by labeling HSPA+ as a 4G technology…We aren’t labeling those technologies as 4G.

We’ll look forward to see T-Mobile come up with some great smartphones in the near future but we’ll also love to see AT&T call T-Mobile’s HSPA+ and raise it an LTE network soon.