It looks like mobile broadband use is about to get a bit more pricey on what used to be the last bastion of unlimited data, Sprint. The carrier has confirmed rumors that it plans to move away from truly unlimited 4G data for its Wi-Fi hotspot and tethering plans. Most users will be subject to a 5GB cap starting in November. 
Fast LTE networks are expanding at a breakneck pace, it's just too bad compatible devices aren't coming out at a steadier clip, not yet anyway. The good news is the transition has already begun and it's expected there will be more than 154 million LTE handset shipments by 2015, according to market research firm In-Stat. Are wireless carriers ready?
Verizon’s 4G LTE rollout has been accompanied by a market increase in the price of smartphones. Most of the carrier’s 4G models have been starting their lives at a $300 price point. The new Samsung Stratosphere is arriving on October 13th with LTE in tow, and it’s just $150 on contract. That’s half as much as the new Droid Bionic.
As the big four US carriers continue to raise prices and cap data, an increasingly competitive pre-paid market is being created. Pre-paid services like Boost and Virgin Mobile are starting to pull some more budget-minded consumers away, but T-Mobile is looking to staunch the bleeding with its new monthly 4G plan sold through Walmart.
When the Motorola Xoom was first announced on Verizon Wireless, one of the main points used to justify the high price was the future addition of LTE 4G data. Well, after six months of waiting, Verizon and Moto are reporting that all system are go for the upgrade to get under way tomorrow, September 29th. 
Sprint was the first on the 4G data bandwagon with its WiMAX network, but lack of adoption and mediocre performance seems to have gotten to the nation’s third-largest carrier. A report from Cnet claims that Sprint is in the process of testing a 
LightSquared has been in the news a lot in the past few months, but not for the reasons they probably would have liked. The company hopes to build a national 4G LTE network that they can charge cellular carriers to use. The only problem is that the bands used by LightSquared have been shown to interfere with GPS signals. After much hand-wringing, LightSquared now claims to have a fix ready.
After months of testing, and a stealth rollout in Chicago last month, the AT&T 4G LTE network is officially going live this Sunday, September 18. The initial 4G footprint is going to be small, just five markets, but it will cover a total of 70 million consumers. AT&T expects to have 15 cities blanketed in 4G by year’s end.
Just four short years. That’s how long IDC says it’s going to take for mobile internet usage to surpass wired use. They base these estimates on the explosion in sales of smartphones and tablets, as well as the new innovation in mobile networks. IDC also suggests that by 2015, web access on PCs is going to begin declining. 
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