i wireless Expands Coverage & Upgrades Network

URBANDALE, IA — i wireless continues its regional network expansion program, adding 110 sites in 2007 and plans to add 100 plus sites by year end. i wireless has invested over $90 million to expand coverage and have upgraded the network to EDGE data technology improving data speeds up to 3x faster.

New sites have been added in 52 counties in Iowa and Illinois, including infill sites to enhance coverage in Burlington, Cedar Falls/Waterloo, Cedar Rapids, Dubuque, Iowa City and the Quad Cities area. i wireless has expanded in the following Iowa counties: Adair, Appanoose, Benton, Black Hawk, Butler, Cedar, Cerro Gordo, Cherokee, Chickasaw, Clay, Clinton, Davis, Des Moines, Dubuque, Franklin, Greene, Hancock, Hardin, Henry, Howard, Humboldt, Ida, Iowa, Jasper, Jefferson, Johnson, Keokuk, Kossuth, Lee, Linn, Louisa, Marion, O’Brien, Palo Alto, Plymouth, Pocahontas, Sac, Scott, Sioux, Story, Tama, Union, Van Buren, Wapello, Washington, Winnebago, Worth and Wright. Illinois expansion includes Henderson, Jo Daviess and Rock Island counties.

"Our recent investments in EDGE data technology deployment as well has adding 307 cell sites across Iowa and Illinois since 2005 and plans to add another 100 plus in 2008, demonstrate our commitment to a great customer experience,” said Michael Haskins, i wireless CEO/COO. “Plus, our partnerships with T-Mobile and AT&T provide the best nationwide coverage on the most advanced network.”

To Get EDGE Speeds You Need An EDGE-Capable Device

While i wireless's Phone Wizard is a nice way to narrow your choices in selecting a handset that fits your needs, it doesn't let you search by data speed capabilities. For those of you that care about things such as this (and based on past comments, there are a few of you out there who do), here is a list of the phones currently offered by i wireless that are EDGE-capable:

• HP iPAQ 510 Voice Messenger
• HTC S621
• HTC Touch
• Motorola RAZR V3-06*
• Motorola W510
• Samsung SGH-a226
• Sony Ericsson Z310a
• Sony Ericsson W300i
• Sony Ericsson W580i
  

...which leaves the following phones that max out at GPRS speeds:

• Motorola RAZR V3*
• Motorola RAZR V3i
  
• Nokia 2610
• Sony Ericsson W200a
• Sony Ericsson Z550a
  

* The RAZR has had such a long life that Motorola has "refreshed" the model a few times. The current version is the V3-06, although you won't find it called this on the phone or its packaging. If you want to make sure that you are buying an EDGE-capable MOTORAZR V3, make sure it is listed on the packaging.

EDGE in Cedar Rapids

I know I'm supposed to be too busy to be blogging, but I had to pass this along.

I was at Hawkeye Downs in Cedar Rapids tonight with my kids, watching the Cedar Valley Trail Riders Motocross. At one point in the evening, I looked down at my phone and was surprised to find that there was an "E" (for EDGE) displayed on my screen instead of the usual "G" (for GPRS). I don't know if EDGE is turned on permanently in that area, or if I just happened to look at my phone during a test run. My phone went back to "G" after we left Hawkeye Downs and unfortunately, it stayed that way all the way to my termite-infested home in Iowa City.

Roaming Data Speeds

I am roaming on T-Mobile right now and noticed that the "G" on my screen (for GPRS) had switched to an "E" (for EDGE). So far, I haven't noticed much of a difference in speed, but I will be roaming on T-Mobile for most of the week, so I will continue to check it out and report back.

i wireless Launching EDGE in Iowa

I thought I would take this opportunity to address some questions posted by shawn.

While I am quite confident that i wireless will eventually launch 2.5G (EDGE) and/or 3G technology, I have no dates or specifics to share. As an early-adopter (or wannabe-early-adopter) myself, I understand the interest in this, but as an i wireless insider, I am not going to leak any of i wireless' future plans on this blog.

Same goes for the international roaming question -- Probably will happen at some point, but I can't say for sure.

I would like to point out that you have always been able to take select i wireless phones with you and use them in overseas GSM markets. First, make sure that you have a phone that operates on 900 & 1800 MHz (typically referred to as a "quad-band" phone, because it works on four bands total, including 850 & 1900, which is what is used in the U.S.). Then all you have to do is buy a prepaid SIM when you reach your destination and slip it into your phone.

It's been years since I've been outside the U.S., but I've been told that prepaid SIMs are readily available in most major international airports and many are more economical than what you would probably pay for international roaming with a U.S. carrier. Of course, you won't have your same phone number, but I guess you have to decide what's more important to you.