Airtel Gets 4G LTE Services To Pune, Is 4G Worth The Upgrade?

It has barely been a year and a half since 3G launched in India, and 4G aka LTE is already making inroads in come cities. Bharti Airtel is the one leading the charge here. After setting up 4G LTE networks in Kolkata and Bangalore, the have now come to Maharashtra. The first city to get a 4G Network is Pune. In a launch event yesterday that was attended by heads of Bharti Airtel from all the circles, they kicked of Postpaid 4G Services in Pune.

Speaking at the launch, Mr. K Srinivas, President of Consumer Business, Bharti Airtel said, “Today, we are excited to launch Maharashtra’s first 4G experience for Airtel customers in Pune. The response received by Airtel 4G services in Kolkata and Bengaluru has been compelling – thus reinforcing our long-term focus on delivering technologies to fulfill the needs of India’s rapidly growing data evolution story. With both home and office users opting for 4G services, it is heartening to see early adopters of this technology acknowledge the experience that Airtel 4G delivers – for everything from streaming videos and downloading music, to accessing business applications, email and rich multimedia content. We are optimistic about the traction that 4G will see in months to come and look forward to rolling out our services in other circles soon.”

Will You Get 4G On Your Phone?

No, the 4G LTE launched in India right now is not for mobile phones. Rather, it is for Data Cards via dedicated wireless LTE Modems, for Smart Televisions and other consumer electronic devices other than mobile phones.

What Makes 4G So Special?

When companies market 4G, the talk about the amazing speeds it gives. 20MBps Upload Speed and 40MBps download speed. But, you may ask, why do I need such fast speeds? My current 3G connection gives me a good 4-6 Mbps, and I am happy with that.

However, another advantage of 4G, that is not talked about too much, is ping speed. On 3G, Ping Speed (how long the server takes to respond) can vary  from 50 miliseconds to 1000 miliseconds, and sometimes ever slower. However, on 4G LTE connections, Ping Speed will always be under 100ms.  This means line quality of 4G will be much greater, aside from the obvious speed benefit.

However, all is not peachy on 4G. If you are to get 4G LTE on your mobile phone, you firstly need to have a phone with a dedicated 4G LTE Radio. Also, Voice Calls cannot take place over 4G. This means your phone will have to use internet on 4G and place calls on 2G or 3G. This puts a lot of strain on the phone and noticeably affects battery life.

How Much Will 4G Cost?

Currently, Airtel have launched 4 ‘Break Free‘ Plans.

1) Rs. 999 for 6GB Data, after which speed gets throttled to 128 Kbps.

2) Rs. 1399 for 9GB Data, after which speed gets throttled to 128 Kbps.

3) Rs. 1999 for 18GB Data, after which speed gets throttled to 128 Kbps.

4) Rs. 2999 for 30GB Data, after which speed gets throttled to 128 Kbps.

Also, Pune Users will get a special promotional Cash-Back plan, in an effort to woo subscribers.

To woo new customers and introduce 4G services to consumers in Pure Airtel has also announced introductory offer for its Pune 4G users under which the telco is offering cash back on the above mentioned plans. Also, users can buy a 4G Multi Mode Dongle + MiFi Modem for Rs. 4,999.

What do you think? Will you try out 4G LTE services when they come to your city? Do let us know in the comments below.

Image Courtesy | BusinessToday

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