Sprint's LTE Network Finally Arrives > Why does it say the LTE downloads are 6-8 Mbps?

Why does it say the LTE downloads are 6-8 Mbps?

That's the marketing rate since most people won't get the peak rate. I think Verizon markets LTE at 5-7Mbps. Not many people will get the peak rates, especially when LTE iPhone comes out. A smartphone app doesn't need more than a few Mbps anyway. The lower latency is where there is significant improvement.

Web browsing at 3-4Mbps at 50-60ms should be faster than 15Mbps at 150-200ms.

reply to Cabal
Sprint is intentionally lowballing LTE speeds to account for a loaded network and outer-cell performance. In many cases speeds will be above what you're seeing for HSPA+, both for downloads and uploads, despite the fact that Sprint is using a single 5x5 MHz carrier for LTE, versus T-Mobile's DC-HSPA+ system (2x 5x5 channels).

As for the battery usage penalty, at this point LTE is mature enough that there isn't a huge battery penalty anymore...now that you can get a SoC that handles CDMA+LTE all at once with a small (28nm) process.

reply to xenophon
Don't knock T-Mobile too much. I've seen 22ms (I kid you not) pings on their HSPA+ network, though that was awhile back. These days, you're looking at 50-100ms. The catch here is that TMo's H+ signal falls off quickly as soon as you head outside town, whereas Sprint is doing market-wide rollouts so that, when a market is complete, every place where you used to have 3G will now not only have LTE, but that LTE will have slightly higher signal strength than 3G used to...and 3G will have higher signals and better throughput as well!

In my last swing through the colorado markets I was amazed an how well put together t-mobile's network was there. Nearly all of my tests showed pings around 50-60ms.

reply to xenophon
Verizon LTE rarely drops below 12mbs. I usually average 12-30mbs, even in major cities it hangs at 10mbs+.

Many Sprint users are getting 10 to 30 Mbps too but just wait until LTE iPhone comes out. It would be foolish for carriers to market 4G at >10 or 20 Mbps avg.

reply to Jon Geb
My VZW Mifi Jetpack with either my laptop or just my iPad get under 12 Mbps all the time. Its not too often I can get near 20Mbps. Recently while in KC/Overland Park Area, my Galaxy Note smoked my VZW mifi spot.