Let me simply start by saying, I call shenanigans on Sprint. I don’t want to seem like a Verizon fanboy, given my recent favorable review of the HTC Eris (https://www.mndaily.com/node/55139), but Sprint is walking in a gray area with their new "4G" network.

While Sprint’s "4G" network boasts speeds of up to 40 megabits a second, they’re being slightly deceptive by calling it a 4G network. Sprint’s definition of a 4G network does not meet the standards declared by ITU-T, or the Iternational Telecommunication Standardization Section. In fact, they’re shorting you out of 60 megabits a second since 4G networks should be rated at 100 megabits a second.

Now, I know what you’re thinking: 40 megabits is still insanely fast. True, and it’s also true that Sprint can just say they’re conforming to a different standard of 4G. Yet, I feel that this is a classic case of a company jamming technical jargon down customers’ throats in order to suffocate them into buying. Hence, I dub Sprint’s new network as 3.5G and not 4G. There’s a reason why there are organizations that make standards and Sprint should not feel that they are above such organizations.

As it stands, this is a good thing for Sprint customers as they are in desperate need of a network upgrade. Phones from AT&T and Verizon easily load web pages a few seconds faster than phones from Sprint. Hopefully the hype from their 3.5G network will even push more companies to upgrade their networks earlier than planned. The world will certainly be a better place when people can instantly play "Charlie bit my finger – Again!", which is sadly the highest played youtube video.