T-Mobile update will open up LTE capabilities on unlocked iPhones

T-Mobile made some big waves in March with the announcement of its new Un-carrier data plans alongside the reveal of the T- Mobile iPhone 5.

While the iPhone 5 won't be coming until April 12, there are still plenty of iPhone users at T-Mobile eager to take advantage of the LTE network under the new plans.

The good new is, anyone already with an unlocked iPhone on T-Mobile's network will soon have the option to partake in LTE speeds thanks to an Apple iOS update.

Due to all T-Mobile iOS devices on April 5, the update will allow for official iPhone support on the network for any device with iOS 6.1 or higher, which includes access to the LTE bandwidth.

Network optimization

According to TmoNews, Apple's update will arrive simultaneously across all of T-Mobile's current iPhones instead of a slow rollout.

In addition to the opening of the LTE network, the carrier-specific update will also introduce Visual Voicemail and MMS Settings currently not available to customers.

There are also supposedly other network and device optimizations included in this update, but there weren't any specific details available as to what that meant.

These features all bode well for T-Mobile, which is attempting to stand out from the crowd with its new philosophy, and could entice more users to not only stay with the carrier, but also to make the jump.

Considering T-Mobile's plans are cheaper than AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint virtually across the board, the iPhone support could help the company fight its way out of fourth place sooner rather than later.