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Most UK People Not Yet Ready to Spend on 4G Mobile Broadband

MSPs
A new web-based ISPreview.co.uk poll of over 740 Internet users in the United Kingdom has found that just 15% of respondents would currently be willing to pay extra for a faster 4G based mobile broadband service, while the rest either said "no" (48%) or were simply undecided (36.5%).

The study also revealed that 78% were already making use of an existing 3G mobile broadband connection to surf the internet via a Smartphone, USB Dongle or some other device. On top of that 82% claimed to already be familiar with the forthcoming 4G technology, which is intended to deliver even faster mobile internet speeds and lower latency connections.

"General awareness of 4G is clearly strong, yet many remain sceptical about whether or not it will be worth the money," said ISPreview.co.uk's Founder, Mark Jackson. "This is all quite understandable because the service has yet to launch and consumers will always need to see the benefits in action before choosing whether or not to make the jump."

"Personally I'd be inclined to wait for more competition to emerge, which is likely to occur after Ofcom's auction of the 4G-friendly 800MHz and 2.6GHz bands in early 2013. Until then there will only be one operator (EE) delivering 4G via just the 1800MHz band. Many of the early handsets are also predicted to be thirsty for battery life, won't necessarily offer the best performance and could suffer due to only limited coverage. Patience may be a virtue but in this case it could also save you money," concluded Jackson.