UK consumers show positive response to 4G LTE technology

There are many marked advantages when it comes to 4G LTE technology. That’s something many have come to realise thanks to various broadband companies who have chosen to bring the technology to the UK. Such services still aren’t available on a large-scale basis but those who have experienced it via the trials that have been conducted by some providers are definitely loving it.

It was widely covered by various outlets when BT Broadband teamed up with Everything Everywhere to launch a 4G trial in Cornwall. The trial made use of 4G or Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology in order to deliver superfast broadband speeds to users in the area.

In the press release that unveiled the 4G trial earlier this year, Everything Everywhere’s CEO Tom Alexander said: “We strongly believe that, by sharing our network and mobile assets in this way, we can make a valuable contribution to the economics of rural broadband services. Our work with BT is providing a test bed for new technologies such as 4G LTE which, with the correct allocation of sub 1GHz spectrum from the Government, has the potential to make a real impact on the way in which we communicate in the future. The Government has previously stated its desire for the UK to have the best in class superfast broadband network in Europe by 2015, and we hope to help this vision become a reality.”

It has since been reported that the trial was able to deliver connections that are close to ADSL speeds. A total of 180 participants are taking part in the trial, with one half making use of 4G wireless routers and the other making use of 4G dongles for their laptops.

A recent report by T3 shows that UK users are reacting quite positively to the technology:

Two things are noteworthy: one consumer admitted to connecting nine devices on a 1Mbps connection, which is certainly far from ideal. The second thing is that BT Broadband is considering using LTE for broadband connections for homes via something called the “Home Hub.” It will be interesting to see where this will all eventually be headed, but for now, it’s obvious that 4G LTE is something many consumers will be happy to have in their homes.

Soure – Gigaom