SOUTH BEND, Ind., June 27, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Verizon Wireless customers in the greater South Bend area can now have access to the Internet and to their email and corporate data at faster speeds, uploading files eight to nine times faster than before as Verizon Wireless rolls out its next-generation high-speed broadband network. Based on CDMA 1x Evolution-Data Optimized (EV-DO) Revision A (Rev. A) technology, the enhanced wireless broadband network provides Verizon Wireless customers in the region with data uplink speeds significantly faster than the company's award-winning national EV-DO network, which the company rolled out in the South Bend area in December of 2006.
This faster network coverage area spans approximately 1,400 square miles around South Bend, Granger, Elkhart and surrounding communities and covers routes between them along U.S. Interstate 80, providing Verizon Wireless customers with faster access for sending and uploading data. Nearby towns located around and south of I-80 -- Georgetown, Simonton Lake, Mishawaka, Dunlap, Goshen, Bremen, Nappanee -- are within the coverage area.
The company's existing EV-DO network enables customers to access BroadbandAccess on their laptops, email on their PDAs, and V CAST videos and music on their wireless phones. The company's national wireless broadband network, the first in the nation, is already available to more than 200 million Americans in 242 major metropolitan areas and 180 major airports from coast to coast.
"Our existing wireless broadband network has enabled customers to work remotely and stay entertained in unprecedented ways," said T.J. Fox, Region President for Verizon Wireless. "Now we're taking wireless to the next level by introducing technology that helps them work faster. Our customers who enjoy the latest technology will applaud Rev. A's faster uplink speeds for their cutting-edge devices."
The company's flagship business data service, BroadbandAccess, will run faster and more efficiently with the new network enhancements. Customers in enhanced coverage areas can take advantage of upload speeds that are eight to nine times faster than with the company's existing wireless broadband network, while interacting with Web-based applications with improved latency for a better customer experience. For example, BroadbandAccess customers in enhanced wireless broadband coverage areas can expect average download speeds from 600 kilobits per second (kbps) to 1.4 megabits and average upload speeds of 500-800 kbps, which means customers can download a 1 Megabyte email attachment -- the equivalent of a small PowerPoint(r) presentation or a large PDF file -- in about eight seconds and upload the same-sized file in less than 13 seconds. The enhanced network coverage areas enable Verizon Wireless customers to download files approximately ten times faster than customers of other wireless service providers that use different broadly deployed network technologies.
Devices that take advantage of the faster speeds provided by the EV-DO Rev. A network enhancements are the USB720 wireless modem, the AirCard 595 and PC5750 PC Card, which are fully compatible with the company's enhanced and existing wireless broadband networks and the company's NationalAccess network (based on CDMA 1xRTT technology). South Bend-area customers purchasing these devices will be able to get significantly faster upload speeds and improved download speeds when in an enhanced network coverage area. The devices are also backward compatible so they will seamlessly switch to the fastest network available, whether that is the enhanced wireless broadband network, the existing wireless broadband network or the network that operates the company's NationalAccess service.
For more information about Verizon Wireless products and services, visit a Verizon Wireless Communications Store, call 1-800-2 JOIN IN or go to www.verizonwireless.com.