AT&T Launches 4G LTE In 11 New Markets

AT&T announced today that they’ve launched 4G LTE in 11 new markets which brings it up to a total of 26 different markets where customers can experience the lightning fast speed that is 4G LTE.

What are the 11 new markets? The New York City metro area, Phoenix, Raleigh, Oakland, San Francisco, Austin, Orlando, Los Angeles, San Diego, Chapel Hill, and San Jose. AT&T says the launch benefits some 74 Million customers, that is of course if they have a 4G LTE phone. If they don’t, well, cough up the dough.

For customers who step out of a 4G LTE area, not to worry. They’ve got you covered:

“There’s also HSPA+ roll-back, for times when you step out of LTE coverage, though you’ll obviously see a reduction in speed too. AT&T already operated its LTE network in Athens, Ga.; Atlanta; Baltimore; Boston; Charlotte; Chicago; Dallas-Fort Worth; Houston; Indianapolis; Kansas City; Las Vegas; Oklahoma City; San Antonio; San Juan, Puerto Rico; and Washington, D.C.”

The company also hopes to have their rollout of 4G LTE mostly complete by the end of 2013. With bigger and badder smartphones and increased need and usage for mobile data, people also demand faster speeds. One question that’s raised however is, what is Sprint going to do? Will they stick to WiMax or convert to faster and more popular 4G standards?

Either way, over the next several years, we’ll see far less barriers when it comes to fast mobile coverage. Who knows…maybe you’ll be out in the boonies one day and find yourself downloading email attachments at a faster speed than what you get at home.