
4G is the fourth
generation of wireless mobile telecommunications technology, succeeding 3G. A 4G system must provide
capabilities defined by ITU in IMT
Advanced. Potential and current applications include amended mobile web access, IP telephony, gaming services, high-definition mobile TV, video conferencing, 3D television
Two
4G candidate systems are commercially deployed: the Mobiles WiMAX standard
(first used in South Korea in 2007), and the
first-release Long Term Evolution (LTE) standard (in Oslo , Norway , and Stockholm , Sweden since 2009). It has,
however, been debated whether these first-release versions should be considered
4G, as discussed in the technical-definition section below
In
the United States , Sprint (previously has deployed Mobile WiMAX networks
since 2008, while MetroPCS became the first operator to offer LTE
service in 2010. USB wireless modems were among the first devices able to
access these networks, with WiMAX smartphones becoming available during 2010, and
LTE smartphones arriving in 2011. 3G and 4G equipment made for other continents
are not always compatible because of different frequency bands. Mobile WiMAX is
not available for the European market as of April 2012

