Vodafone to start HSDPA trials

The race to roll out HSDPA (the next generation mobile phone technology which delivers true broadband like download speeds) appears to be hotting up.

Vodafone today announced that following on from a trial in its home town of Newbury it is now going to try the technology on its network in April.

It has signed up 100 business users who will be testing Vodafone UK’s HSDPA-enabled Mobile Connect
Cards for PCs across central and greater London.

Voda’s version of HSDPSA can run at up to 1.8Mbps standard – almost four times faster than base level home broadband speeds –  but it suggest that customers will experience
peak downlink speeds of around 1.4Mbps (with an average of 400 – 700Kbps
across all coverage areas) and up to 384kbps uplink.

HSDPA will mean fast web access and download speeds for users on the move as well as delivering high quality video streaming and conferencing.
Other networks have also been talking up the technology with Orange, O2 and T-Mobile all expected to launch HSDPA networks this year.

In addition to the cards for PCs there are a small but growing number of HSDPA phones available from companies like Samsung and BenQ Siemens.

Tim Miles, CEO Vodafone UK said:  "The start of our high speed 3G broadband
trial marks our relentless commitment to offering the best possible
experience to our customers.  We have seen high demand for 3G since its
launch two years ago and our customers are hungry for the improvements that
HSDPA will deliver.    These important trials are part of a continuing drive
to lead the UK through superior network performance and a customer
experience that is second to none."