T-Mobile USA is playing catch-up with Verizon Wireless, AT&T and Sprint Nextel. The carrier is moving aggressively to expand its footprint in 2009 and has opened its cellular network to laptops, thanks to the launch of a USB dongle from Huawei Technologies.
The 8 GB storage device and dongle would allow customers to access T-Mobile’s 3G HSDPA network and 802.11 b/g Wi-Fi network in T-Mobile hot spots. The tri-band 3G dongle is also compatible with T-Mobile’s nationwide EDGE network and EDGE/GPRS frequency bands.
The device is being sold at a price point similar to offerings from Verizon: It costs $50 or $100, depending on whether customers sign a one- or two-year contract. Laptop users then pay a monthly fee of $60 to use the dongle for up to 5 gigabytes of Internet traffic.
T-Mobile is also moving aggressively to grow its network footprint. It has plans to expand into an additional 100 cities and double the population currently covered by its high-speed network to 200 million by the end of the year. The company’s 3G network is currently available in more than 130 U.S. cities.