Title: The theoretical and real world of 4G technologies

Authors: N.P. Singh

Addresses: Management Development Institute, Mehrauli Road, Sukhrali, Gurgaon-122007, Haryana, India

Abstract: The research paper discusses three variants (LTE, WiMAX, and HSPA+) of 4G technologies as prevalent in the market. The major emphasis is on growth patterns of subscribers and comparison of theoretical and real data download and upload speeds. Data used for the purpose is collected from secondary sources. It is concluded that there is huge gap between theoretical speeds and real speeds of all three 4G technologies, i.e., LTE, WiMAX and HSPA+ competing in the ecosystem. Speed also depends on the type of device used to access the 4G networks. The future trends depend on technological advances in the existing set of technologies. It is also concluded that though LTE is emerging the most popular technology, HSPA+ and WiMAX will continue to compete and will survive in the future. Further, a word of caution is stated that growth of technological advances should be sustainable with huge investments and linked with other human needs.

Keywords: 4G technologies; 4G networks; high speed packet access; HSPA+; worldwide interoperability for microwave access; WiMAX; long term evolution; LTE; flat rate tariff; MIMO technology; 64 QAM; orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing; OFDM; subscriber growth patterns; data download speed; data upload speed; theoretical speeds; real speeds.

DOI: 10.1504/IJMNDI.2013.060227

International Journal of Mobile Network Design and Innovation, 2013 Vol.5 No.2, pp.97 - 118

Published online: 26 Jul 2014 *

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