Sprint's Tri-Band LTE Network 'Spark' Will Feature Samsung Smartphones

Thanks to the unique capabilities of Sprint’s recently acquired Clearwire spectrum, it is ready to go on an aggressive marketing campaign to promote Sprint Spark. Spark is the name given to Sprint’s tri-band LTE network. If all goes according to plan, this roll out could be the U.S.’s largest LTE network when it comes to spectrum usage.

The Clearwire acquisition has given Sprint a block of wireless spectrum from 2500-2600MHz. This is the single largest contiguous frequency lease in use by any mobile data provider in the U.S. This large spectrum will allow Sprint to be the first carrier in the US to be able to outfit its towers with 8 transmitters, 8 receivers (8x8) radio heads. This greatly increases the throughput capacity of the network.

Sprint Spark promises speeds of up to 50-60Mbps. Chances are that this can only really be achieved outdoors with really good conditions. This is because the 2500MHz signal does not really have great building penetration. What can be expected is a better user experience. Sprint Spark will shift from one band to another. This will depend on what speed is needed for the application in use at any given time.

One of the problems, however, is the fact that right now Sprint doesn’t have any phones that actually support the tri-band network. This will change next week: On November 8, 2013, those phones will launch. We are looking at the Samsung Galaxy Mega and the Galaxy S4 Mini. Below is an image of the Galaxy Mega.

Yes, Samsung will have two new smartphones that will be at opposite ends of the spectrum. Not the tri-band spectrum, but the one that traverses size. The Samsung Mega will be a 6.3 inch device, making it a phablet, while the Galaxy S4 Mini will be making the scene at 4.9 inches.

The tri-band devices support active hand-off mode between 800MHz, 1.9GHz and 2.5GHz. This provides a continuous data session as the devices move between spectrum bands. Sprint Spark provides the capacity to greatly improve the performance of video and other bandwidth-intensive applications. In addition, it also paves the way for a lot futuristic applications.

Although both of these Samsung smartphones will be available from Sprint on November 8, it will take just a little longer to be able to use them on Sprint Spark. The devices will become tri-band enabled with a software update that will be issued shortly after their launch next week.

Earlier today, Sprint announced its third quarter earnings results. It seems that the third quarter saw mobile service revenue grow year over year for 13 consecutive quarters. A lot has been going on with Sprint this year. Its acquisition of the Clearwire spectrum, its acquisition by SoftBank and the shutdown of the Nextel network all happened this year.

In addition to the Samsung devices, you can expect to see HTC launching the HTC One max soon. Also making its debut next week, on November 8, is the LG G2. This device will take a little longer to become tri-band ready. There will be a software update sometime in early 2014.