TOKYO-Japanese carrier NTT DoCoMo Inc. announced it will join Cingular Wireless L.L.C. in upgrading its W-CDMA-based network to HSDPA technology. As proof of its intensions, DoCoMo said it has co-developed three new HSDPA prototype phones with Motorola Inc., Fujitsu Ltd. and NEC Corp.
DoCoMo said it plans to launch HSDPA services sometime between July and September.
DoCoMo was the first carrier in the world to launch a large-scale commercial W-CDMA network. However, Cingular last year took the worldwide lead in HSDPA technology with the launch of 16 W-CDMA/HSDPA markets. HSDPA technology is an upgrade to W-CDMA that supports faster data rates.
Interestingly, there are currently no HSDPA handsets on the market. Cingular users can only access the carrier’s HSDPA network by using PC cards in laptops. So far only Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. has announced a commercial HSDPA-capable handset. The company did not say if and when it would be available in the United States.
Motorola said its HSDPA prototype handset supports data transmissions of up to 3.6 megabits per second. DoCoMo said its forthcoming HSDPA network will support transmissions of up to 14 Mbps.
