By Michael Roden, SMB/VoIP Analyst, GetVoIP.com
The small-to-medium business sector represents one of the most demanding groups, for myriad of reasons. Efficiently allocating time, resources, employees, and more is crucial to survival in the tough economic climate we’re all experiencing. Fortunately, there’s an abundance of solutions on the way and in development, designed to incorporate reliability and speed into one compact package.
One of the biggest offerings that has been slow to roll out, but is highly anticipated nonetheless is 4G LTE. With widespread deployments in the works, consumers are poised more than ever to take their wireless environments and VoIP Services to the next level. Let’s take a closer look at what this impending technology might mean for SMBs.
Increased Internet Speed
Perhaps the most obvious of improvements, and at the same time, the most promising, for businesses of all sizes. 4G LTE can theoretically support download speeds of up to 100 Mbps and upload speeds of up to 50Mbps, though actual connectivity will typically be much less. In any essence, 4G LTE is significantly quicker than its 3G predecessor, with a noticeable difference in handling data-heavy operations for content sharing, video conferencing and more. Faster mobile connection speed provides lasting benefits, and it bears reiteration that efficiency is incredibly important when your business needs to be mindful in its application of both time and finances. As compared to large enterprises, time constraints can seem much tighter when running on a likewise budget – a proven mitigating factor to this corporate stressor is higher speed and efficiency. The introduction of 4G LTE will ensure your business is running on all cylinders, at all times – without ever missing a beat, or a deadline.
Cost Savings
A number of cost benefits brought about by 4G LTE will bring delight to office executives when bills and other reports start to shuffle in. Upgrading only involves the capabilities of the device, while the cost of service plans is exactly the same as 3G (as 4G connections do fall back on 3G when necessary). With 4G LTE complementing the surge in BYOD, clunky and expensive hardware becomes a thing of the past. Increased mobility means less money spent, and a lot more office space to boot.
Speaking of office space, 4G LTE deployments are expected to increase over the course of 2013, optimizing call quality and streaming no matter where you might be in the building. Expect 4G LTE to graciously meet the demands of some the top UC tools, allowing workers to collaborate remotely and/or online, eliminating the need for ink and paper wherever possible. This is great for the environment as well as the pockets of small to medium business owners. 4G LTE delivers high bandwidth with minimal downtime, freeing up time to focus on more intricate affairs.
Long-Term Evolution Means Seamless Adaptation
Higher data rates (about 10x faster than existing 3G technologies) means your firm will never be left behind, no matter what may come. 4G LTE has already been selected as the global standard by some mobile operators, with that number only growing exponentially in the near future. By creating a collaborative, connected network environment, SMBs can rest easy knowing they’re prepared to adopt any innovation or development that might benefit them. Implementation of the most cutting edge solutions at will naturally translates to considerable growth over time.
Conversion of 3G subscribers over to 4G LTE is projected to speed up considerably over the course of 2013, with an anticipated 785 million LTE subscribers by 2017. Complementary to the movement in the mobile workforce, 4G LTE will also bring high speeds to businesses across the US who previously couldn’t imagine the luxury. The implications are remarkable, not to mention undeniable – 4G LTE is the clear-cut standard of the future. Expect the best to be using it to enhance their engagement, monetization, and productivity for the long haul.
