Sierra Wireless today announced
five new data cards and USB modems for mobile broadband networks worldwide. The expanded AirCard lineup includes support for the emerging HSPA+ technology standard, which offers download speeds of up to 21 megabits per second (Mbps).
The
AirCard USB 308 and
USB 309 and the
AirCard 503 provide HSPA+ support, with peak download speeds of 21 megabits per second.
The AirCard
USB 301 and
USB 302 provide prepaid functionality.
The AirCard USB 301 and USB 302 incorporate pre-pay functionality with a microSD card slot for extra storage and an external antenna connector to support reception in fringe areas is included.
The 503 data card is a convertible 2-in-1 card that fits both PC card and ExpressCard slots.
The USB 308 and USB 309 are USB modems with a new industrial design and performance improvements. The difference between the two models lies in the HSPA+ frequency bands supported – the AirCard USB 308 supports the 850, 1900, and 2100 MHz HSPA+ frequency bands, while the AirCard USB 309 supports the 900 and 2100 MHz frequency bands.
Devices in the new AirCard product lineup are scheduled to begin shipping in the fourth quarter of this year.
As of August 2009, there were
11 HSPA+ networks running in the world at 21Mbit/s. The
first to launch was Telstra in Australia in late 2008, with Australia-wide access in February 2009 with speeds up to 21Mbit/sec.
T-Mobile expects to have its 7.2Mbps HSPA service online by the end of 2009 and introduce HSPA+ service at 21Mbps at some point in 2010, using
their AWS frequencies for which they paid $4.2 billion at the 2006 auction.
AT&T plans to begin deployment of HSPA 7.2 in six major U.S. cities this year, including Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Los Angeles and Miami, with initial service availability expected in these markets by the end of the year. All told, the company plans to deploy HSPA 7.2 in 25 of the nation’s 30 largest markets by the end of 2010, and to reach about 90 percent of its existing 3G network footprint with HSPA 7.2 by the end of 2011.
