Three looking at 14.4mbps mobile broadband
High speed wireless network in pipeline
Mobile network operator Three has told Techradar it expects to move to even higher mobile broadband speeds as it attempts to corner the mobile broadband market.
Britain is still lagging behind the rest of Europe in terms of mobile broadband speeds, with 3.6 mbps the current default over HSDPA, though Three is working on doubling that speed.
"We're hoping to bring our network up to 7.2mbps over the summer," confirmed a spokesperson from Three to Techradar. "Our network currently offers 3.6mbps, which in real terms is around 1mbps, and we're currently investing in our network.
"This means we might get 2mbps when we upgrade. The appetite for data is huge, so we have to have a sufficiently deep network, with the right amount of density and backhaul, to cater for all customers."
14.4mbps… not all that
The spokesperson said the network is working on upgrading the speeds to an even faster 14.4mbps, but is unsure when this will be as Three is now implementing the current upgrades.
"You have to bear in mind that higher speeds mean the network becomes more sensitive. For instance, with 7.2mbps you have to be within around 200m of a mobile mast to really get the top speeds.
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"What we hope to offer is greater capacity, in order to serve more users, rather than just focusing on the top speeds."
Gareth has been part of the consumer technology world in a career spanning three decades. He started life as a staff writer on the fledgling TechRadar, and has grew with the site (primarily as phones, tablets and wearables editor) until becoming Global Editor in Chief in 2018. Gareth has written over 4,000 articles for TechRadar, has contributed expert insight to a number of other publications, chaired panels on zeitgeist technologies, presented at the Gadget Show Live as well as representing the brand on TV and radio for multiple channels including Sky, BBC, ITV and Al-Jazeera. Passionate about fitness, he can bore anyone rigid about stress management, sleep tracking, heart rate variance as well as bemoaning something about the latest iPhone, Galaxy or OLED TV.