AT&T's HSUPA Upgrade Near Completion

Let me announce some great tidings for AT&T subscribers. The wireless carrier has announced that its entire 3G network will be upgraded to High Speed Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA) technology by the end of June .

AT&T's HSUPA is expected to complement the previous upgrade to the wireless network's High Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) technology. If completed, the upgrade will make
AT&T the first U.S. mobile phone service provider to fully deploy HSPA Technology in its wireless network. The upgrade will allow AT&T subscribers speeds of up to 1.4 Mbps (Down), 800 Kbps (Up).

here's a comment released by the carrier's representative:

"The ability to quickly upload large files from a laptop is no longer a luxury — it's a necessity. By fully deploying HSUPA across our 3G footprint, we not only meet the current needs of our customers but also lay the path for our continued evolution to even faster wireless broadband capabilities."

Currently, the super fast 3G wireless network is being offered in more than 275 markets. The 3G network will be available in nearly 350 markets before the end of the year. The new upload speeds complement AT&T's 3G download capabilities, which currently offer up to 1.4 Mbps across all markets. Customers who have capable devices, such as LaptopConnect wireless modems will benefit from this technology.

In the last three years, the company has invested more than $20 billion in network improvements and upgrades. This figure means that an average of $5 billion a year has been spent by AT&T. The mobile phone service provider will be able to reuse valuable 850 MHz spectrum to expand and enhance 3G markets by recently turning down its older TDMA network. AT&T's HSUPA wireless network is positioned to keep up with customer demand. The company envisions to adopt LTE (Long Term Evolution) technology to reach even higher speeds in the long term.

Some experts see the upgrade as Some experts say that this move may be part of the preparation to launch the 3G iPhone. It has been known to the wireless community that Apple's new handset will sport a 3G radio. This rumor is also based in history. Last year, before the release of the EDGE capable iPhone AT&T embarked on a massive EDGE network upgrade.