Telstra Pumps Up 4G Speeds With 900MHz Rollout

  • To introduce faster LTE-Advanced services
  • Telstra's 4G network expansion over the past 18-months
  • Response to strong uptake of smartphones and tablets

Telstra is expanding its existing LTE network with the addition of 4G services on the 900MHz frequency, as it aims to extend the reach of the network into regi

  • To introduce faster LTE-Advanced services
  • Telstra's 4G network expansion over the past 18-months
  • Response to strong uptake of smartphones and tablets

Telstra is expanding its existing LTE network with the addition of 4G services on the 900MHz frequency, as it aims to extend the reach of the network into regional areas and opening the door for faster LTE-Advanced coverage.

Telstra's 4G network presently operates on the 1800MHz frequency in capital cities and a number of rural hubs. Utilising the 900MHz band should help to expand the network, as lower frequency bands can be accessed over greater distances. This is the same strategy that has made Telstra's Next G network on the 850Mhz band so successful.

Moreover, this network upgrade gives Telstra the option to introduce faster LTE-Advanced services where data is transmitted over both the 900- and 1800MHz frequencies simultaneously, again similar to the Next G network set up that sees 42Mbps speeds over 3G technology.

The latest move comes in line with Telstra's 4G network expansion over the past 18-months and is the telco’s response to strong uptake of smartphones and tablets and shifting data usage by the telco's 14.4-million subscribers.

"More than half of all Australians now own a smartphone, up from 32% in 2010, and we're increasingly using them not just for work but for entertainment too,” said Brendon Riley, Telstra's Chief Operations Officer, also adding that they predict that their customers will use as much data this year as they have used in the past two year's combined.

Telstra move comes a day after rival telco Vodafone announced it had started testing its own 4G network in Sydney, ahead of a wider national launch later this year.